


Full House

by iamgizy (saddle_tramp)



Category: NSYNC
Genre: Explicit Sexual Content, M/M, Multi, mention of D/s play gone wrong, mention of past physical and sexual assault, mentions of past emotional abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2001-02-19
Updated: 2001-02-18
Packaged: 2017-10-15 18:35:48
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 68
Words: 319,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/163702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saddle_tramp/pseuds/iamgizy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><b>This story contains very explicit male/male sex</b> so if you don't like graphic sex or men that prefer men you should carry your ass off to read something else.</p><p>PAIRINGS: JC/Justin, Joey/Chris, and Joey/Chris/Lance with mention of Brit/Wade, Brian/Nick, AJ/Howie, Chris/Howie, Tony/JC, implication that O-Town, Kid Rock and Carson Daly are bi or gay, and use of my own OMC and OFC where I see fit. Yes, I use original characters, but I don't pair them with the guys so don't get your undies in a bunch, plz & thanks.</p><p><b>WARNINGS:</b> Mentions of D/s play that got out of hand, physical and/or sexual assault, and past emotional abuse.</p><p>SUMMARY: A fic wherein you'll find an obvious lack of plot as you follow the guys around just before and during a week off in Myrtle Beach.</p><p>One reader disagreed with my summary and told me that she thought the plot was watching how their love grew and developed as they adjusted to being honest about their feelings. I think that's as good a description as any, but if you come up with a better one, email it to me.</p><p>Posted by request of a fan of this series. All 68 chapters will go up as I have time, I promise!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> NOTES: I did finish a complete edit on Full House while compiling the chapters into one ebook about a year ago, and some minor details did change from the original as I elaborated on a few things, including fixing some of the scenes that were annoying me and/or correcting minor stupidities on my part, but the story as a whole is intact as it was.  
> There are two still unfinished prequels, _'Two Of A Kind'_ and _'Ace In The Hole'_ that will make parts of this story make much more sense. I recommend reading them. They're both fairly short, and unfinished as I said, but they do give a lot more background on the OCs I brought in later in this story.
> 
> This 'verse as a whole **will not** be finished.  
>  I'm sorry, but that's just the way it is. I've tried repeatedly in the ten years since I wrote this, and it's just not going to happen so please don't ask for more chapters.

 

~~~~1~~~~

 

JC leaned out of the door of the bus as he looked across the nearly deserted parking lot. He was still feeling the adrenalin high from the concert, and grinning ear-to-ear as he called, "Hey Curly! C'mon man, we gotta blow this popsicle stand!"

Justin glanced over at his best friend, grinning brightly. "Just a sec C, you know I can't leave these ladies with nothin' to show for waiting around this late!"

JC snorted and shook his head, but he was still grinning. He knew that the late hour was just an excuse. Justin would be willing to stay and sign autographs whether the fans had waited an hour or a week to see him. "Well hurry up, okay? The driver's chomping at the bit and Lance says we gotta go soon if we want to make Nashville on time."

"Gotcha!" Justin nodded and went back to signing jewel cases and posters.

JC scanned the parking lot, glad to see Lonnie wasn't far from Justin. There was no sign of the usual swarms of teenies, but after a moment JC remembered it was well after midnight. He grinned as he realized that most of their fans were probably home in bed. If Justin felt like he just _had_ to sign some autographs now was probably the safest time.

JC stood in the doorway watching his best friend for another moment. The fans Justin was talking to looked to be JC's age or maybe even a bit older, and they weren't dressed like the groupies who so often hung out near the buses after a concert. He finally made a decision and hopped down off the bus step to run over and say hello. He slung an arm around Justin's waist when he reached his friend, his eyes shining as happy as his grin as he looked at the women standing nearby and said, "Evening ladies, I hope you enjoyed the show!"

One of the women grinned at him and nodded. "We sure did, Mr. Chasez. You guys were _on_ tonight!"

Several others nodded, smiling, and JC was glad that they were older fans. Teenies usually began squealing or even crying just because he or Justin had looked at them, and actually talking to them would have meant more screaming and probably a few fainters. JC _hated_ the fainters, it always made him feel bad that young girls would pass out just because he said something to them or shook their hand or something.

"Call me JC, please. Mr. Chasez is my dad," JC said with a grin. "And thanks, we had fun didn't we Jup?" He looked at his best friend, squeezing Justin's waist a bit.

Justin looked up from the disc he was signing to grin at JC. "Oh yeah, we had a blast!" He looked back at the ladies, adding, "You Detroit fans really rocked the house tonight." Several of the fans giggled at that, and Justin gave first them and then JC a quizzical look. "What?"

"Um... Justin, we're in St Louis." JC tried hard not to laugh, but the mirth in his eyes was impossible to miss even in the half-light of the parking lot.

Two of the giggling women dissolved into laughter as Justin tried not to blush and failed. "I knew that, I was just seeing if you're paying attention."

JC grinned at him. "Uh-huh. Whatever you say, Curly."

Justin started to hand back the CD he'd just signed, still blushing, but he paused halfway and pulled it back with a sudden grin. "Hey, would you ladies like JC to sign some stuff, too? If he's gonna stand around making me look a fool he can at least do somethin' useful, right?"

The brunette who'd handed Justin the jewel case he was holding nodded and gave JC a shy grin. "If you don't mind?"

"You don't need my help to look like a fool, Jup. You do that just fine all on your own." JC took his arm from around Justin with an impish grin and took the CD from him, pulling a Sharpie from his back pocket with the other hand as he smiled at the brunette. "And I don't mind a bit." He signed his name next to Justin's with a flourish and passed the CD back to the woman, then accepted another CD from one of the others to sign.

Justin signed the last poster that was handed to him a few moments later and then watched as JC signed whatever was handed to him, pausing between autographs to say something to each of the women. JC was always nice to the fans, but he usually managed to find a little bit more time for the little kids and the older women. Years on the road had made them all pretty tired of the incessant screaming of teenaged girls and they had begun to fight shy of the worst of them, though they often felt bad about it later. Screaming teenaged girls were a large part of why they got to live out their dreams, but the novelty of hearing girls screaming their names had worn off long ago.

Before long, JC had added his signature to everything that the ladies had brought along. JC's eyes met Justin's again, his grin widening just a bit when he saw Justin had been watching him, then he turned back to the fans. "I'm sorry ladies, but we do have that interview in the morning in Nashville, and a photo shoot after that, so we really should get going. Anything else we can do for you before we go?"

Justin slung an arm around JC's shoulders then, watching the women with a grin and waiting for an answer. He figured they'd ask for backstage passes to the next show, or maybe tickets. Word had gotten around that JC would usually give their fans either one, sometimes both. JC was a softie for a sweet smile from a pretty woman, especially if she didn't scream at him or grab him.

The women looked at each other for a moment before one of them nudged the redhead closest to JC. She gave her friend a dirty look and then looked back at JC and Justin as she spoke up hesitantly. "Um... Well, we've been following you guys since the first US tour. We go to a lot of your concerts, and since the last one in Lexington we've been wondering something. Could you answer a question or two for us?"

JC looked surprised but he was already nodding when Justin said, "Sure, ask away."

The redhead glanced at her friends again and then asked, "How long have you two been together?"

JC blinked and then turned his head to look at Justin, meeting his best friend's equally surprised look. Fans who'd followed them for several years ought to know when they had met, they had talked about it often enough.

JC looked back over at the woman, wondering if somehow he'd misunderstood the question. "Do you mean when Justin and I met?"

"No, of course not," she said, shaking her head. "We all know you two met when Justin joined the cast of MMC. I meant how long you've been _together_ , as a couple."

"Oh!" JC said, his eyes going a bit wide. He glanced at Justin again before he looked back at the group of women, suddenly conscious of Justin's arm around his shoulders. He had no clue how to answer the question, so he asked another instead. "What makes you think we are?"

The redhead's eyebrow went up and she looked rather obviously at Justin's arm, but it was the brunette next to her who spoke. "Well, you two sing to each other a lot when you perform and, well, you just look like you're in love..." She trailed off and then shrugged, looking almost embarrassed. "You have for a long time, since that Christmas special you did for Fox."

Justin looked at the women, his dark blue eyes thoughtful. "Would it upset you if we were?"

JC glanced at Justin again, surprised that he had asked that, then looked back at the fans because he wanted to hear the answer to Justin's question. Justin was as straight as they come and rather firmly taken besides, and all the fans knew it as well as JC did. Justin really had no reason to care whether or not the ladies would be upset if he were gay. JC on the other hand... Well, rumors had been flying about him for years, and it really didn't help that some of them were true. JC had learned the hard way that denying rumors was much easier to do if they were lies.

The redhead answered Justin's question, smiling. "I think it would be _great_. You're best friends, you have the same interests and you're just _so_ cute together. And, like Kaela said, you two seem like you're in love."

The others nodded and JC blinked a few times, wondering why - if the fans could see it - someone who'd shared a bus with him for years couldn't tell how he felt. For that matter he wondered why _four_ guys who'd shared a bus with him for years didn't see it. Of course, he didn't particularly _want_ them to figure it out, but that was beside the point, right? If strangers saw how he felt, it seemed like his best friends should, too.

Justin spoke again then and distracted JC, his voice calm and a smile on his face even though JC could feel the tension in the arm around his shoulders. "I'm glad you wouldn't be upset by it. JC is my best friend in the _world_ , but we're not together like that."

JC just nodded, thinking that was accurate even as he wondered why Justin was glad they wouldn't mind if he was gay. Most straight guys would have a screaming fit if a woman 'accused' them of being gay. He knew Justin wasn't homophobic because they knew a lot of dancers who were gay or lesbian and Justin got along great with them, but he still hadn't thought Justin would want anyone to mistake him for gay. Some of Justin's oldest friends were a little on the homophobic side, though, which was why they were only Justin's friends and not JC's. It seemed like anyone who cared if people were gay or not spotted JC a mile off and avoided him, even though people who knew him well seemed to take it for granted he was straight. It had never made sense to him.

The taller of the two blonds in the group of fans spoke up then, her head cocked to one side. "But y'all are always hanging all over each other, and I've _seen_ you together at Tabu and at the Club in Orlando several times. Forgive me, but you do _not_ dance together like two straight guys." She gave them a wry grin.

JC laughed and then said with a smile, "Going to places like Tabu doesn't make you gay. I _do_ like the gay clubs, but it's because I can dance in one and not have to worry as much about someone trying to grope me when I just want to do the ride. That, and I don't have to dodge half as many fans at gay bars as I do at the straight places. A lot of our fans wouldn't be caught dead in a gay club."

Justin nodded. "And the people at those two clubs aren't going to have a cow if JC and I want to dance together. After the manager of that place in Seattle called the cops on us for 'public indecency', that's become something else we have to think about when we go clubbing. C taught me to dance back when we were on MMC together, and we still want to be able to dance together if we feel like it. It's nice to be able to just get out and enjoy dancing without having to wonder what the other person wants from you or your friends, or if they're going to try something."

They all heard the bus start up then and looked that way just in time to see Lance stick his head out the door. "Come _on_ , you two!" Lance called, exasperated. "You can pick up girls some other time. We gotta go _now_!"

"We're coming!" JC turned back to the small group of women with a quick smile. He reached into his jacket then and pulled out a pass, drawing a Chinese symbol on the back with quick, efficient strokes of his pen before he handed it to the redhead. "I'd like to introduce you ladies to the other guys, but we don't have time right now. If you show this pass to Lonnie or one of his guys at the next concert you come to, he'll bring you all backstage to hang out with us, okay?"

JC grinned at the surprised group of women as Justin spoke up, not giving them a chance to say anything. "It's been great talking to you, I hope to see y'all again soon. Thanks for coming tonight."

JC and Justin turned and ran side by side to the bus then, matching strides without trying or truly even noticing. They had moved together on stage for so long that they often fell into step with each other offstage too out of habit.

The door had just closed behind Justin when the redhead spoke up, grinning like a Cheshire cat at her friends. "Justin is straight, but he's glad we wouldn't mind if he were gay." She snorted. "I can't _believe_ he expected us to believe that! Those two are about as straight as my brother's _boyfriend._ "

The other women laughed and watched the buses pull out of the parking lot before heading to their own van for the drive home.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

~~~~2~~~~

 

Justin flopped down on the couch next to Lance, opening the bottle of water he'd grabbed on his way to the back of the bus. "Why didn't y'all come sign some stuff?" he asked, looking around at the others. "Those ladies were cool."

Chris snorted from his position sprawled across the floor, his eyes closed. "I'm sure they didn't miss us, they had you two divas to fawn over."

Joey laughed as Justin choked on his water and glared at Chris, who didn't even open his eyes while Justin coughed and Lance pounded his back.

"Hey!" JC said indignantly. "I'm _not_ a diva!"

"Oh c'mon, C," Lance said with a grin. "You _know_ you are, just like Juppy here. I think it's Disney's fault, they really spoiled their mice."

Chris was finally watching with a little smirk as Justin glared at Lance and exclaimed, "I ain't no _diva_! If anyone is it's _you_ , with your pretty green eyes and all those _girly_ clothes you wear."

Lance gave Justin a grin and batted the eyes in question at him, not at all put off by his friend's glare. Justin was mostly bark and they all knew it. "You really think my eyes are pretty, Curly?"

Joey sat up a little on the pile of beanbags in the corner, grinning at Chris before he looked back over at the couch to watch Lance needling Justin. Lance was in a playful mood, which was a rare occurrence that was always worth paying attention to since there was no telling what he'd do. Lance could outthink them all without trying very hard, and had a habit of tossing out a zinger every once in a while just to remind everyone that he could.

Justin glared at Lance some more, open his mouth to reply just as JC spoke from Lance's other side. "Stop fishing for compliments, Scoop. You _know_ you're gorgeous."

Lance turned to look at JC then, and when Chris and Joey saw Lance's expression they both grinned a little wider. Everyone knew Justin couldn't stand it when Lance flirted with any of them, especially JC. JC was completely oblivious to the fact Lance was flirting to begin with, but Justin always had a hissy fit.

Lance gave JC a slow once-over with a cocky little grin, his light green eyes sparkling with mischief. "Hmm... Justin likes my eyes and you think I'm gorgeous. You guys hoping to get laid, or did you just lose your cell phones again?"

JC had just opened his mouth to answer indignantly - Lance was _not_ his type! - when he realized he _didn't_ know where his cell phone was and shut it with a click. He patted his pockets and then rather obviously looked across the room to the rack of chargers, getting a laugh from everyone but Justin.

"If I was to go to somebody in this room to get laid it sure as _hell_ wouldn't be you, Lance," Justin said in a scathing tone, looking like he was about a second from getting really angry. " _You'd_ get all pissy 'cause I made you bottom."

Chris whooped with laughter at the look of surprise on Lance's face. "Score one for the kid!"

Joey chuckled, wondering how Lance would reply. Justin wasn't quite as smart as he thought he was, Joey knew, but he wasn't sure if Lance would point that out or not.

JC just stared at Justin in shock for a moment, his eyes huge, then said, "Justin! I can't _believe_ you just said that!"

Justin looked at JC, the glint in his dark eyes the only thing giving away the fact he wasn't really quite as annoyed as he looked anymore. "Why? It's the _truth_! Lance would be a _terrible_ bottom, he's too damn bossy."

Lance sputtered a moment before he finally found his voice and said indignantly, "I can bottom just as well as _anyone_ , Justin! If you don't believe me, you can ask Joe!"

Lance slapped a hand over his mouth, his green eyes going wide. He hadn't meant to say that, really. He didn't so much mind that he had just let the cat out of the bag, but he hadn't intended to tell three of his best friends he was sleeping with the fourth quite like that.

The others just stared at Lance in surprise for over a minute, but when Lance didn't elaborate they turned to look at Joey.

"What are you guys looking at _me_ for?" Joe asked, positively smirking.

"You dirty dog, you," Chris said, sounding almost awed as a big grin bloomed on his face. " _Now_ we know why you were so pissed when your bus died and y'all had to come share with us!"

JC was looking from Joey to Lance and back again, a little smug grin spreading on his face even though he was still surprised. After they came back from Toronto he'd thought something might have gone on between Joey and Lance, and it looked like he was actually right. JC loved to be right, especially since he hardly ever was. It didn't matter that no one else knew he had already suspected they were lovers, the important part - at least to him - was that he had been right.

Justin looked from Lance to Joey and then back at Lance. "So, what? Are you gay?"

Everyone was surprised when JC answered Justin without thinking, still looking at Joey with that little grin as he said, "Yeah."

JC's blue eyes went all wide and clueless when the others looked at him in surprise, pretending for all his worth that he didn't know he'd said anything. He couldn't pull off the innocent look as well as Justin, but he could usually fool them. Well, okay, _sometimes_ he could fool them. If they didn't really want to know.

Oh _hell_ , it was hopeless, he _knew_ it, but he could put off the inevitable for a minute to give him time to try and think of a way out of it, right?

"What?!" JC asked after a moment, looking around and trying to figure out what was going through their minds. When he turned enough to see the way Justin was looking at him, he suddenly wasn't sure he wanted to know anymore. Justin looked shocked and maybe even a bit mad, and the last thing JC wanted was for Justin to react badly to finding out JC was gay.

"The Infant just asked _Lance_ if he was gay, and _you_ said yeah. Are you, C?" Chris asked him with a speculative look on his face.

JC looked around the room at the others and then settled on looking at Chris as the safest bet. Chris was calm and he was usually cool with just about anything, so JC thought Chris would react well. "Is that a problem?"

Chris shook his head quickly, giving JC a grin. "No man, not a problem, you just surprised us. I had a hunch Lance drove on both sides of the road, and I _knew_ Joe does, but I thought you were straight."

JC laughed, honestly surprised. "Why would you think _that_?!"

Joey snorted. "Um, hello, earth to JC? Does the name _Bobbee_ ring any bells?"

JC made a face. "She was _not_ my idea, I have much better taste than that. Johnny _told_ me I had to date that ... woman."

Lance frowned and asked without thinking, "Did he make you sleep with her, too?" He looked abashed as soon as he said it. "I'm sorry, Josh. I had no right to ask that."

JC patted Lance's shoulder. "Don't worry about it, Scoop. If _anyone_ has a right to know, it's you guys. I let everyone think I slept with her because she insisted on it. She wanted the rep of being a 'Nsync girlfriend, not to be with me in particular." JC shrugged. "I finally got to dump her because, in her words, she was tired of my shit. Johnny decided dating her had made me look straight enough I guess, 'cause he's pretty much left me alone since then except harping on my clothes and telling me to get a haircut."

"So Johnny made you get a beard," Chris said, frowning. "Does _he_ know you're gay?"

JC shook his head. "No, he just knows a lot of the fans think I am. He decided I needed a girlfriend to prove I wasn't."

Chris snorted. "That's stupid. Even Ricky Martin can buy a beard, and everyone knows he's queer as a three dollar bill. He's _not_ making you do that again." He looked around, meeting Joey and Lance's eyes as he said, "He's not making _any_ of us do that, understand?"

"Sure," Lance said, nodding.

Joey nodded, not quite frowning at JC as he added, "You gotta remember _we_ run this show, C, not him."

Everyone was surprised when Justin suddenly spoke, his voice quiet and sounding more than a little strained. "Joshua, why didn't you tell me?"

JC looked quickly at Justin when he heard him call him 'Joshua' and flinched at the hurt he saw on his best friend's face. "I... I didn't know _how_. I didn't want to make you uncomfortable around me, Justin."

Lance patted JC's shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile before he moved over to sit with Joey, leaving JC and Justin alone on the couch. This was between them in Lance's opinion, and he didn't want to interfere even by just sitting between them. He hoped they wouldn't _want_ anything between them for long. Lance knew that Justin had always loved JC - even if Justin was straight, which Lance wasn't at all sure of - and that he'd accept the news JC was gay sooner or later.

Lance was betting on sooner, and wouldn't be surprised at all if Justin told them he was gay, too. Justin was officially with Britney, yeah, but Justin didn't even seem to _notice_ all the women who threw themselves at him and Brit never seemed concerned that he might. Lance thought they acted more like siblings than anything else, and wasn't at all convinced that they were honestly dating instead of just hanging out together.

Justin looked at JC for a long moment, not even seeming to notice when Lance stood and left the couch. "Why did you think I would care, Josh? You're my _best friend_ , don't you trust me?"

JC stared at Justin like he was crazy. "Justin, of _course_ I trust you! It's just that, well, a long time ago I told someone I trusted almost as much as I trust you and the reaction wasn't what you could call good. I didn't want to go through that kind of hell again, especially if it might mean I could lose you." JC looked earnestly into Justin's eyes, pleading for Justin to understand. "Justin, you're _the_ most important person in my life. I didn't want anything to mess with that."

"Was the person you told your mother?" Chris asked then, his eyes sharp as a few things that had puzzled him suddenly made sense. He was also thinking a suspicion or two he'd had for the last few years was probably true.

JC looked at Justin for a long moment more, searching Justin's dark blue eyes for some hint that he was okay with JC being gay. He finally sighed and looked over at where Chris sat on the floor as he said quietly, "Yeah, it was. I told her while we were in Germany the first time, and she said she couldn't stand to look at me anymore. She still doesn't like it - or me - but she's finally accepted it enough that she'll let Tyler come visit me when he has time off school. Heather feels the same as mom and dad do though, and wants nothing to do with a fag. That's why I always spent any time off we had with you guys or at the compound until I bought my house. I'm not really welcome at my parents’ home, not even to visit."

Justin was watching him, his eyes dark and almost unreadable. "So you've known you were gay since we were first getting started in Europe?"

JC looked at Justin quickly, nodding. "Just before that actually--" The look in Justin's eyes made him drop his gaze to look at the floor as he broke off and fell silent. Justin was really upset and that was _not_ a good sign.

Justin just sat there staring at JC, looking as though he wanted to say something but he couldn't find the words.

When neither spoke after a few minutes Lance decided to. "Josh, I've pretty much always known I wasn't straight but from what you said you didn't know until you were seventeen or so... How did you figure it out?"

Lance was really hoping the answer would make Justin stop looking so upset. He had a hunch he knew, and if he was right he thought it would help quite a bit for Justin to hear it.

Germany was the first place that Lance and Justin toured without their mothers along. Lance and Justin had been assigned to share a room while each of the others got their own, but Justin hardly ever slept in their room. After a week or so of Justin disappearing at night he'd gotten worried the younger boy knew he was bi or thought he was gay so he had asked why Justin always slept somewhere else. Justin had just shrugged and said that when he was with JC he felt like he was at home and JC didn't mind if he slept in JC's bed. Lance had wondered for a long time if JC and Justin were more than friends. He had never seen two guys so close to each other, not even Joey and Chris, who could almost read each other's minds even though there was some weird tension between them then. Lance had finally realized that JC and Justin were just friends, despite all the indications otherwise, but he had always thought it was because Justin was straight, not because JC was.

JC blushed, his eyes on his feet as he spoke. "I-- I finally realized I was in love." He paused and then went on more quietly, "With a guy. And that I never really had been interested in girls." JC didn't see Justin's face because he kept looking at his feet, but the others could plainly see the confusion and hurt in Justin's blue eyes.

Justin sat back then, moving away from JC just a bit as he tried to absorb that bit of information. The way JC said that made it sound like he'd known the guy for a while by then, which didn't leave a whole lot of options. JC had never had many guy friends other than the other four in the group, some of the other ex-mice and a few producers. JC was friends with many of the dancers they had worked with, of course, but he hadn't known any of them back then. When the group went over to Europe, they weren't big enough to rate backup dancers.

Justin looked at JC's lowered head for a minute or even two before he blurted, "Are you still? In love I mean?"

Chris was smiling, sure he already knew the answer, while Joey and Lance exchanged a wide-eyed 'are you thinking what I'm thinking?' looks, but the two on the couch paid no attention to any of them.

JC finally looked up, meeting Justin's gaze as he gave him a sudden soft smile. "Oh yes. I'm with him most of the day, every day, and every time I see his smile I fall a little more." This time he saw Justin's flinch and the pain in his eyes, and JC reached for him with one hand as his own smile disappeared. "Justin..."

Justin pulled away before JC could touch him. "Why...? I'm--" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then opened them and asked in a rush, "I'm with you _all the time_ , why haven't _I_ ever seen you with him?"

JC stared at Justin, surprised by the question and trying to think of how to answer him. He had no idea how to say, 'It's you,' even though that should be such a simple thing to do.

After only a moment Chris butted in, trying to help. "Infant, use your head. There aren't many men with JC every day that we knew back then, and even fewer who are around him for more than an hour. I can tell you it's _not_ Lance or Joey, and it sure as hell isn't me, so who does that leave?" Joey and Lance were both grinning now, and Chris was smiling encouragingly at Justin.

JC looked at the others and then back at Justin, hoping that if he gave him a few moments he'd figure it out. The others seemed to think it was pretty obvious, so why didn't Justin see that JC was talking about him? Did he just not _want_ to see it? Was the idea that terrible?

Justin looked at the floor and thought for a moment, then his eyes went wide and he looked back up at JC. "You're in love with _Andy_?!"

Chris slapped himself on the forehead and fell backwards onto the floor with a groan while Joey and Lance both tried not to laugh.

JC blinked, totally lost. "Who?"

Justin's brow furrowed and he looked even more confused. " _Andy!_ You know, the bus driver. He's the only one I can think of who's with us all the time, unless it's one of Lonnie's guys... Or Lonnie?" he half-asked, going wide-eyed again at just the thought.

JC smiled then, his eyes sparkling with suppressed laughter. Justin was always amusing when he was dense, and just then he was being _very_ dense. "No, Justin," he said, "it's not our bus driver or one of the security guys."

Justin looked even more confused if that was possible and bit his lip, thinking hard. He had to have seen this guy if JC saw him every day, since Justin was within sight of JC almost all the time when they were on tour. The others seemed to think they knew, so it couldn't be _that_ hard to figure out who it was.

JC watched Justin think, smiling slightly because it seemed like Justin was more upset about _who_ JC was in love with, not that it was a guy. JC was sure that Justin would figure it out if he was given a little time. Justin could be dense, but he wasn't stupid.

Chris was unable to take the suspense for long though, and sat up after a few minutes of Justin chewing his lip and looking lost to say, "It's _you_ , you idiot!"

Justin's eyes went huge again and he looked from Chris to JC and back, his mouth falling open in an almost comically shocked expression.

JC gave Chris a dirty look and spoke, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Gee, _thanks_ , Chris. I'm _so_ glad you figured out how I should tell my best friend that I'm in love with him."

Chris had the grace to look a bit sheepish and shrugged. Patience just wasn't Chris' strong point; they all knew it and he wasn't about to start apologizing for it.

JC looked at Justin again then and reached over to close his mouth with a small smile, hoping Justin would start feeling better about the whole situation any second. "Don't look so shocked," he said after a moment, "you _know_ everyone loves you, and that I love you... I just love you a little more than you thought. I don't expect anything different from you, Justin. I know you're with Brit and I respect that."

Justin looked at JC like he was nuts for over a minute, then he jumped up and ran into the front of the bus without a word.

 


	3. Chapter 3

 

 

~~~~3~~~~

 

Chris, Joey and Lance watched JC's face fall as Justin left the room, wondering what was going through Justin's head. They were all quite sure Justin loved JC more than any of them, so his reaction was more than a little puzzling to them.

After almost five minutes of staring at the now-empty couch and occasionally wiping his eyes, JC finally turned to look at the others, his sad blue eyes still shining with tears. "Well, he didn't call me a faggot like my mom did," he said quietly, trying to give them a watery smile but failing miserably. "I had sort of hoped he wouldn't feel like he had to _run_ from me, though."

Lance moved back to the couch and sat by JC, putting a hand on JC's back as he tried to think of something, anything, to say. He knew that having Justin run out like that had to have hurt JC a lot more than he wanted to let on. JC had always been the type of person that was choosy about where he gave his heart, but once he had he didn't hold anything back.

JC wiped his eyes and looked down at the floor again, trying hard not to sob. Holding back tears had already been difficult, but for some reason it was much harder to do with Lance offering comfort. JC hated to cry, but he hated crying in front of someone even more. Nobody looked good when they were blubbering like a child, but besides that it was utterly embarrassing. JC knew he wasn't the most macho guy around by far, but even he would be ashamed to have his friends see him fall apart.

After a few minutes Lance started talking softly, his eyes on what he could see of JC's face. "It'll be okay Josh, I'm sure of it. He loves you too much to--"

Lance broke off in surprise when Justin hurried back into the lounge. Justin was talking animatedly on the phone and looking as happy as he'd been in weeks. Lance frowned, wondering what the hell Justin was thinking; he'd just made his very best friend - a man who everyone knew loved him more than anything - _cry_ , and he was happy?!

Lance's frown faded after a moment though as things began to filter through his mind and he added two and two together. Justin found out JC loved him, then he ran to use the phone, and _then_ he was happy. _Who is he talking to at nearly three in the morning_ , Lance wondered suddenly. _Lynn? Brit maybe?_

"Yes, he _did_!" Justin said emphatically, grinning. "Uh-huh. ... I can't! ... No! ... Yeah, I _know_ but I need _you_ to tell him. ... C'mon, _please_ , Pinky? For _me_?"

 _So it is Brit_ , Lance thought as he watched Justin listen to Britney a moment and then grin blindingly. _What the hell did she say to make him so happy?_

"Great! Love you, girl. I _really_ appreciate this. Here he is." Justin put the phone in front of JC's face then, smiling at him as he said, "Brit needs to talk to you."

Lance frowned at Justin, thinking that even Justin should see that Brit was the last person JC would want to talk to right now, especially right after hearing Justin tell her he loved her. Justin was dense but he didn't have a mean bone in his body, so Lance was pretty sure it wasn't _intended_ to hurt JC, but still. Gross stupidity was easy to mistake for cruelty.

JC took the phone, looking completely lost and more than a little hurt. "Um... Hello?" he said hesitantly, looking towards Chris, who was still sprawled in the floor.

Chris gave JC a quick reassuring smile and a nod. He thought he knew where Justin was going with the whole talking to Brit thing. If he was right, JC would feel a lot better after he had talked to her.

Brit's excited voice was immediately in JC's ear, too loud and too fast. "Oh my _God,_ sweetie, I wish I was there to hug you! Did you _really_ tell him you're in love with him?"

JC nodded, then remembered he was on the phone. "Well, kinda, yeah, but--"

Britney interrupted him. "Don't worry, Josh honey, he's just wished for this for _so long_ that..." Brit's voice kept going but JC didn't quite hear her, he was too busy looking up at Justin in shock. Her voice droned on in his ear for almost a minute while he stared at Justin before she said something that caught his attention again.

"Brit, wait, _stop_. Back up and say that last part again." JC rose slowly, looking into Justin's smiling eyes, the sudden hope on JC's face making it seem to almost glow as he waited for Brit to answer.

Lance suddenly wondered if maybe Justin wasn't as stupid as he thought. Whatever Britney had said, it had wiped the pain out of JC's eyes faster than he would have thought possible.

"I _said_ he's been in love with you since we were _mice_! Weren't you _lis_ \--" JC blindly tossed the phone towards Lance and reached for Justin.

Lance caught the phone and put it to his ear with a grin, watching JC and Justin kiss. Britney had obviously told JC that Justin had feelings for him, too. In the past Justin had been known to have Brit say something he couldn't, for whatever reason, so Lance supposed he probably shouldn't be as surprised as he was. Brit was still rambling on about how Justin had never loved anyone but JC and she was so happy for them, but Lance mostly tuned her out. He was sure Justin didn’t particularly want Brit telling him that Justin had been in love with JC since before he even had his first wet dream.

Britney realized nobody was really listening to her again after a few minutes and raised her voice. " _Hello_?! Am I talking to myself here?!"

Lance laughed. "No, you're talking to me."

"Lance?" There was a moment of silence and then she said, "Umm, hi. Where'd JC go?" Britney sounded hopeful, like she thought she knew but didn't want to jump to conclusions.

Lance smirked just a bit. "He's busy kissing Justin."

Lance jerked the phone away from his ear then as Britney screeched, followed by a loud yell of " _Yes_!" that was clearly audible as far away as where Chris sat in the floor.

Chris and Lance grinned at each other, both thinking the same thing: going by that reaction Brit was as happy as JC and Justin, if not happier. She'd been like a little sister to them all when they toured together and they all talked to her often, so knowing she was okay with Justin and JC hooking up was great.

After a moment Lance put the now-quiet phone back to his ear, watching Justin's hands slowly roam over JC's back. "Brit, I'll have Justin call you tomorrow so you can screech at him in person, okay? He's kinda busy right now, and doesn't look like he'll be stopping anytime soon."

Britney giggled. "Okay, give everyone a hug for me," she said. "Oh, and y'all should be getting a box in the next day or two from my mom, I already got mine. You guys will _love_ it, but she made me promise not to tell what it is."

"Okay Brit, I will," Lance replied, "and I'll keep an eye out for the package."

"I love you guys, see you soon."

Lance smiled. "We love you too, Brit. Bye."

After she hung up, Lance looked back at Chris, who was now sitting cross-legged and grinning while he watched two of his best friends kiss. Lance had to really work at it not to laugh. Chris looked happy enough you'd think he was the one who had just found out his best friend was in love with him.

Lance suddenly remembered again the two years that Justin slept in JC's bed much more often than he did alone and wondered what had changed to make Justin start sleeping alone. JC had said he loved Justin _before_ Europe, and after what Brit had said Lance knew that Justin had been in love with JC at least as long. All the times Justin had curled up in JC's lap to sleep or watch a movie seemed strong evidence to support that, especially since Justin never did that with any of the others. Justin's surefire cure for homesickness had always been to cuddle with JC and the quilt his grandmother had made for him.

Lance looked at JC and Justin again and his lips twitched when he saw that Justin's hands had roamed on down to JC's rear while JC's hands were tangled in Justin's curls. They were still completely absorbed in each other, kissing slow and deep as if they had forgotten the rest of the world existed.

Lance glanced towards Joey after a moment and met a familiar heat-laden gaze that made Lance's grin turn more than a little bit wicked. Lance stood then and moved around the other three to go to Joey, bending to kiss him rather thoroughly as Joey pulled Lance down onto the beanbag chairs with him. Lance and Joey hadn't had much of a chance to be together in _days_ , and now that they weren't trying to hide from the other three, Lance intended to make up for lost time.

JC and Justin finally came up for air a little while later, both breathing fast as they stared at each other, their expressions saying more than mere words could.

Even a complete stranger would have had no doubt what their feelings for each other were, and Chris wondered absently how anyone, including himself, could have ever seen the obvious love in those faces as anything else. He had suspected JC had more than friendly feelings for Justin for a long time, but he hadn't really thought that Justin felt the same way. Even someone as dense as Justin would have done something about it if they were gay and knew JC would do anything for them, and Justin never tried anything so Chris had figured he _had_ to be straight.

 _But he's not_ , Chris thought with a sudden smirk, _he's just an idiot_.

Justin and JC had been joined at the hip ninety percent of the time Chris had known them, since Justin was barely fifteen and tagging along with seventeen-year-old JC everywhere he could get in the door. Over the years since then Chris had seen a thousand smiles between the two a lot like this one, and after the first few weeks he'd known them he'd always dismissed it as just a really deep friendship. There was a difference in the way they were looking at each other after that kiss, but Chris doubted anyone who didn't know them _really_ well would be able to see it.

"Don't stop now," Chris said after he figured they'd stared at each other long enough. "I was enjoying that almost as much as you two were."

JC blushed and stepped back then, sitting rather abruptly on the couch when it hit the back of his knees. Justin grinned and followed JC, sitting next to him and draping an arm around JC to pull him a little closer. JC gave Justin a sweet smile as he snuggled in against Justin's side, and then looked over at Chris and blushed again. He felt like he should say something, maybe apologize or try to explain or something, but he had no clue what to say.

JC noticed Joey and Lance kissing then, and his blue eyes went all wide and pretty as all thought of talking to Chris left his head. _Joey kissing_ Lance _? With tongue?!_ He blinked a few times to make sure he wasn't daydreaming, but nothing changed. That was still Joey and Lance on the beanbag chairs, they were _still_ kissing, and there was _definitely_ tongue involved on both sides. He wasn't quite sure anymore if it was Joe kissing Lance or Lance kissing Joey, though. The more he watched them, the more it looked like Lance was in control and that Joey liked it that way. Liked it _a lot_.

"Wow," Justin said after watching Lance and Joey for a minute. "Okay. Now I won't feel bad about making out on the bus whenever I get the chance." Justin wondered suddenly if JC would go for doing more than just kissing, but after only a moment's thought he grinned. JC usually did just about anything Justin wanted to do, and judging by JC's response to kissing - Justin barely managed to resist the temptation to look at JC's lap - he wanted more just as much as Justin did.

Joey and Lance parted then and looked at the two on the couch. Joey was grinning like a fool as Lance said with a little grin, "Go ahead and play, you won't bother us."

Chris nodded and grinned wickedly at the two on the couch. "Yeah, do whatever you feel like doing, it's cool. You twocan't shock us. We've already seen everything you have to show, I think."

Justin just laughed at that, but JC, still a bit wide-eyed, asked, "Chris, how do _you_ know we won't shock Lance?"

Chris smirked. "Because I know Joe."

Joey grinned smugly. "You won't shock Scoop, I _promise_. Behind those pretty green eyes is one of the dirtiest minds you'll ever meet."

Lance swatted Joey, looking indignant. "You say that like it's a bad thing! Maybe I should go over there with Chris; I'm sure _he_ appreciates someone who has a mind and knows how to use it."

Chris snickered and watched as Lance made as if to get up, but Joey dragged him back down with a laugh. "Oh, no you don't! I won't share you with Chris unless I get to have him too and you know it."

Lance looked at Joey with artfully wide eyes, pretending shock. "Why, Joseph Fatone, are you suggesting a _threesome_?!"

Chris laughed at that mostly to hide his own surprise, turning to look at JC and Justin and giving them a rather obvious once over to shift the focus of the conversation back to them. "Why just a threesome? JC's beautiful, and Justin's no slouch... I say we have a good old fashioned _orgy_ so we can teach the Infant how it's done."

"Oh God," JC said as he blushed, turning to hide his face against Justin's t-shirt.

Justin wrapped his free arm around JC and gave Chris a dirty look. "I don't need anyone to show me, old man," he said. "I'm _quite_ capable of taking care of Josh all by myself."

"You're a virgin, or so you've always said, so how do you know that Juppy?" Chris asked, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "And you said yourself earlier that you expect to top, so you'll need someone to show you how to --"

JC pulled away from Justin and looked at Chris, his face beet red as he rushed to interrupt Chris before he could finish that sentence. " _Jesus_ , Chris, how is that _any_ business of yours?!"

Chris held up his hands in a 'don't hurt me' gesture. "Hey, I'm just sayin' that, for the good of the group, he might need a few lessons. We can't have either of you two getting too sore to dance; explaining why wouldn't go over well with the powers that be."

Chris grinned wickedly at them, ignoring the stifled noises coming from the vicinity of the beanbag chairs in the corner. Lance had a hand over his mouth trying to silence his laughter and Joey was hiding behind Lance's shoulder so that all they could see of his face were his crinkled, laughing eyes.

Justin spoke up, talking to Chris but looking at JC. "Just because I've never _done_ something doesn't mean I don't know _how_. And I said I wouldn't bottom for Lance, not that I wouldn't for _Josh_. Don't worry about my dancing Chris, he won't hurt me."

JC looked quickly at Justin then and was about to say something to him when Chris butted in again, half-serious. "Dancing the next day is _not_ gonna be fun, Juppy. This is the voice of experience, kid."

Justin didn't look away from JC's eyes. "I've done concerts with pulled muscles and broken bones, I can handle a little pain if I need to."

Chris was about to argue some more when Lance rolled his eyes and cut in. "You two - or three if JC ever gets a word in edgewise - could argue all night I'm sure, but it's all academic at the moment. We're on the bus until tomorrow after the concert, and Justin is _not_ losing his virginity on this bus. Not while _I'm_ on it, anyway."

Lance thought the whole discussion was getting fairly ridiculous. He didn't remember his first time being terrible - rather nice actually, even if it had been in the back room of a German nightclub - and he'd managed to dance afterwards without the other guys noticing anything different. Of course, they'd been known to say he danced like a cow on crutches on a _good_ day back then, so he supposed it was just barely possible that him dancing worse might not have been very noticeable.

"If you do decide to bring in some help," Lance went on with a wicked grin, "let me know and I'll be glad to demonstrate whatever you two want to know."

JC stared wide-eyed at Lance, shocked, and said the first thing that came to mind. " _Nobody_ is fucking me but Justin, and you can't have him, he's _mine_."

Chris stifled a laugh, well aware that JC was really annoyed by the suggestion if he was using the dreaded f-word. He was also thinking that the next week was going to be a lot of fun. He had all sorts of new reasons to pick on them now, and JC blushed _so_ easy.

Justin saw Chris' face and winked at him, then looked at Lance, grinning. "What JC said, only vice-versa. I appreciate the offer, and you know I love you guys, but there's some things I wanna do for myself. Josh is one of them."

JC looked at him in surprise. "Justin!"

Justin just grinned wider. "Josh!"

JC frowned and said warningly, "Jus _tin_..."

Justin gave him his best innocent look. "Yes, Josh? Did you want something?"

JC's eyes narrowed as he finally realized that Justin was playing with him. "If you don't want to sleep alone tonight, I suggest you behave yourself."

Justin looked at the other guys then, grinning ear-to-ear. "You're my witnesses! He said if I'm good then I'm not sleeping alone!" He turned back to JC then, cocking his head to one side and trying to look thoughtful even though his eyes were full of mischief. "Hey, if we go to bed right _now_ then I won't get the chance to mess up, and I'll finally get to hold you all night again." He kissed JC quickly and then added, "Let's go, quick, before you change your mind. My bunk or yours?"

Lance chuckled as Chris groaned and shook his head vehemently. " _Neither_!" Chris said forcefully, "You two can have the couch so I can shut the door and not have to listen to you!" He paused a second, thinking, then went on, "That door _is_ pretty thin though, and I really don't want to listen to you fuck. Hearing either of you get a blow job isn't high on my what-I-want-to-do-tonight list, either... Hmmm... _Ah-ha_! New rule! No sex on the bus."

JC frowned at Chris and opened his mouth just as Justin spoke up, still grinning. "No reason for that, Chris. We'll stay right here on the couch and be good. We won't even take off all our clothes."

JC gave Justin a dirty look and then spoke, giving Chris a very serious stare. "I am not going to fuck Justin, now or _ever_." Justin's eyes widened and he was about to protest since he had kind of looked forward to just that for a while now, but JC ignored him as he continued, "I'll make love to him, but I will _never_ fuck him."

Justin grinned, relieved and thinking that he'd have to remember that JC wanted to 'make love', not just get laid. Justin didn't really care what you called it, he'd go along with whatever JC wanted, especially if it involved getting naked and sweaty together.

 _Mmm, yeah,_ Justin thought, _very naked and sweaty. And sticky too. Sticky would be good..._

"Justin was right, it is way past our bedtime," Lance said with a grin as he stood up, derailing Justin's train of thought just as it got really interesting.

Lance offered Joey a hand up, then walked over to Chris and pulled him to his feet too before he moved over to the couch and did something he hadn't done in years. He kissed JC on the cheek, then did the same to Justin and gave them both a grin. "Night guys. Don't do anything I would do."

JC's eyes went wide again at that but Justin just grinned and said, "Night."

Lance turned to go towards the front of the bus to head for his bunk, but stopped after only a few steps. Chris was blocking the doorway, his arms folded across his chest and a mulish look on his face.

Lance waited patiently for Chris to say whatever was on his mind, and after a moment Chris gave in. "You kissed everybody else tonight, where's mine?" he asked, expecting Lance to just kiss his cheek even though he really wanted more. He hadn't missed the fact that Joey and Lance were both interested in him, and he definitely wanted to find out what they had in mind.

Lance grinned wickedly. "You sure you can handle it?"

Chris' eyebrows went up but he didn't hesitate as he stepped forward instead of answering, his hands going to Lance's shoulders as he leaned in to kiss him. It started innocently enough but quickly changed when Chris tried to take control and Lance didn't allow it, instead thrusting his tongue into Chris' mouth and taking over. Chris wasn't used to kissing guys, at least not anymore, and the combination of the strong muscular shoulders under his hands and the forceful way Lance took over the kiss defeated any protests he might have had before he even had them.

Joey watched from a few feet away, grinning because he was sure he knew who was going to win. Lance looked sweet and not very macho, but he was a control freak in all the best ways and could be seriously toppy when he felt like it.

JC and Justin looked at each other in surprise just as they heard a noise and quickly looked back at the pair in the doorway. Lance was rather obviously in control of the kiss, his hands on Chris' waist while the older man held on to Lance's shoulders and made little noises in the back of his throat, trying to get even closer to Lance.

Lance was the one who finally broke the kiss and pulled away, his hands moving up to Chris' chest and pushing him back gently when Chris tried to follow him. "That good enough?" he said with a smug grin, green eyes sparkling with mischief.

Chris just stared at Lance for a long moment, his eyes wide, and then blurted, " _Damn_ , Joe! Why didn't you _tell_ me Mississippi could kiss like that?!"

Lance let his hands drop and stood there grinning at Chris, feeling quite smug. He wasn't the most experienced person in the room by far, but he definitely had talent. Joey had said so more than once, and everyone knew Joey had plenty of experience to judge by.

Joey smirked at Chris. "You never asked me, dude. He was just playing with you though, you still have _no_ idea."

Chris' eyebrows rose as he thought about the implications of that. " _Damn_ ," he said feelingly, a grin spreading slowly across his expressive face. "Okay Scoop," he finally said, "you can re-book the hotel rooms for the rest of the tour. I won't be needing mine, I’m gonna sleep with you and Joe." Chris didn't stop to think how Joe might react to that - didn't want to, really - or about the fact that even though his tone was light he wasn't really joking.

The others all watched as Lance leaned forward until his lips were within an inch of Chris' to murmur with a wicked smirk, "You might want to keep that room, old man. We wouldn't want _you_ to be the one too sore to dance." Lance slipped past him and disappeared into the darkened hallway, leaving a wide-eyed Chris standing there staring at nothing, shocked.

Joey stepped up to Chris while he was distracted and kissed him, drawing a low moan from the smaller man almost immediately as his hands lifted to grab Joey's shirt. Kissing Joey was like a drink of cold water after a long hot day for Chris, and he shuddered slightly as he pressed closer, letting Joey support him as his knees went weak. He had never been able to resist Joey's kisses, not even when Joey was seventeen and knew almost nothing about what two guys could do together.

By the time their lips parted, Joey was holding Chris in his arms, smiling as he wondered if Chris could even stand if he let go. It had been a very long time since he was allowed to hold Chris like that, and he was willing to stand there as long as Chris needed him to.

After a moment Chris reached up to stroke Joey's cheek as he stared into Joey's eyes, searching for something he couldn't have put a name to if he tried. "Why have we waited so long to do that again?" he asked softly after a few moments, his tone wistful and more than a little sad.

JC and Justin exchanged a surprised look, both wondering when the first time had been and why Chris seemed sad remembering it. Chris was usually the type to blurt out anything and everything that ran through his mind, and he had never said anything to make them think he and Joey were anything more than close friends. When they both realized that the other looked equally shocked, they quickly looked back over to Joey and Chris. They didn't want to miss anything.

Joey's smile faded a bit and took on a wry twist. "Because you didn't want us to," he said quietly. "I believe your exact words were 'I don't want to be just another guy on _Behind the Music_ who fucked up his band by fucking the band.'"

Chris flinched and rested his forehead on Joey's collarbone, his hands moving up to hold on to Joey's shoulders. "God, I am _such_ an ass." He pulled away and looked up at Joey again after a moment as he said, "I know it's not worth much, but I'm sorry. I've been sorry a long time and just didn't know how to fix it, or if I could, or even if I should try. Hit me next time I do something that stupid, okay?"

Joey smiled softly at Chris and ran a hand up and down his back soothingly. "I hit you then Chris, remember? I think hitting you hurt me more than you. You had it in your head that the group was more important than _anything_ , even us, and I had no prayer of changing your mind."

Chris sighed and looked at Joey's chest for a moment, then looked back up to meet his gaze. "I'm sorry, I was an idiot. No, I was _worse_ than an idiot. I hurt you because I'm a coward."

Joey's hand moved up to cup Chris' cheek and he smiled softly. "Chris, you hurt yourself at _least_ as badly as you hurt me. I forgave you a long time ago."

Chris just stared into Joey's eyes for a long while, trying to find the words to say how much he still loved Joey, how much he had _always_ loved him, even when he was telling Joey they had to end it. The group had been the chance of a lifetime for all of them, and Chris hadn't been able to let himself do something that he knew would cost the others their careers. When it was just _his_ dream, being with Joey didn't seem like such a bad move, but after he had JC, Justin, and Lance all counting on him he just couldn't convince himself that it was okay anymore.

Joey was about to speak again when Lance stepped out of the darkened doorway behind Chris, a finger on his smiling lips. Lance slid his arms around Chris from behind, making him start in surprise, and rested his chin on Chris' shoulder, looking up at Joey. "Don't worry, Chris," Lance said quietly, "I won't let you break his heart again."

Joey saw Chris flinch again then, but he didn't know what to say to make it easier for Chris so he held his peace to let Lance handle it. He trusted Lance to handle things in such a way as to not hurt Chris any more than he had to, and knew Lance would beat himself up about even the unavoidable pain. Lance seemed calm and almost distant to people that didn't know him well, but Joey knew he was a complete softy who had loved Chris - loved all of them - for a _long_ time.

Lance gave Chris a squeeze after a moment and lifted his head so that his lips were by Chris' ear to speak in a low, rumbling tone that made Chris shiver. "Now come to bed, it's late." Lance lightly nipped Chris' earlobe then and let him go, disappearing into the dark again.

Joey gave Chris a squeeze and another kiss, then let him go and walked off towards the bunks after Lance. It had hurt then that Chris could give him up so easily, but Joey had bounced back after a while and gotten on with his life, content to at least be with Chris most of the time. It had been months before he noticed that Chris never looked at guys at all even though Chris had been more likely to go for a guy as long as Joey had known him. It wasn't long afterwards that Joey realized Chris seldom dated a girl more than twice, a pattern Chris kept up for years until he met Dani.

Joey had wondered often about the fact that Chris never seemed to consider more than dating with Dani either, even though he dated her for over a year. Joey still had a promise ring with Chris' name engraved inside it - he knew right where it was - and suddenly wondered if Chris had kept his ring, too.

After Joey left the room, Chris stood and stared at JC and Justin without really seeing them for a long moment, lost in his own thoughts until JC spoke and Chris shook himself to pay attention.

"Were you and Joey together when we started the group?" JC asked, giving Chris a slightly hesitant smile. "I remember thinking you were for a while, but I convinced myself you were just close like Justin and I." His smile took on a wry twist as he realized that it probably had been a lot like he and Justin, except Joey and Chris had evidently known exactly what they were missing.

Chris nodded and answered quietly, "Yeah. We'd been friends for years by the time I met you, Josh, but we had just gotten really serious when Lou signed us. Ring type serious."

Chris paused then, looking at the floor, then took a deep breath and went on, "I was ready to do _anything_ to make this work - hell, I would have even been Lou's boytoy if I thought it would help - and I was scared that Joey and I being together would ruin it for everyone, so I broke up with him." Chris gave them a weak attempt at a smile that was completely ruined by the pain in his eyes. "Stupidest thing I _ever_ did, but by the time I figured that out he had moved on. I never really knew what I had until I drove him away, and then it was too late to fix it."

JC and Justin were quiet, not knowing what to say, and Chris looked at them for a moment before he added, "I've watched you two for a long time now. When Joey first introduced me to you two I wondered just how close you were, but I eventually realized you were just friends even though it was obvious you love each other more than any two people I've ever known. You've only gotten closer since then; you have the kind of connection, the kind of _love_ , that most people look a lifetime for and never find. _Nothing_ is worth losing that, not our careers or our families or anything. I was too stupid to talk to anyone, so sure I was right that I didn't think I needed to, and I fucked up the best thing that had ever happened to me. Don't ever follow my example, okay?"

"We won't, "Justin answered quietly, giving JC a squeeze as he looked seriously at Chris. "I've spent over seven years waiting for this, and now that I've got JC _nothing_ could make me let him go."

"Same here," JC said, "only I didn't know I was in love with him for a few years. I knew he was my best friend and that I loved him, but it took me a while to see I was in love with him too." JC glanced at Justin for a moment, smiling, and then looked back up at Chris. "I think you've gotten a second chance, Chris. I'm sure they both love you."

Chris looked wistful as he replied, "I hope you're right, Josh. I can't think of _anyone_ I'd rather be with than Joe, unless it was Lance." He grinned suddenly and teased, "You two are rather obviously the exclusive type, and taken." He winked at them and then turned and disappeared into the dark hallway as he added over his shoulder, "Y'all behave yourselves, I'm going to go see if somebody happened to crawl into my bunk."

"Chris?" JC called after as second, grinning impishly in reply to Justin's quizzical look.

"What is it now?" Chris called, sounding amused.

"C'mere a sec." When the familiar dark head appeared in the doorway again, JC gave Chris a bright grin. "Just so you know, I'm _not_ a diva. I'm a supahstah." The obvious fake Bostonian accent was enough to make Justin laugh, but Chris just snorted and slid the door shut. The two sitting on the couch heard him chuckle just after the door closed though, and after a moment he was joined by the deeper laughter of their other two friends.

JC and Justin looked at each other for a long moment, smiling, and then without a word both leaned in for another kiss, meeting halfway.

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

 

 

~~~~4~~~~

 

The digital clock dangling from the top of the mirror in the tiny bathroom began loud, insistent beeping at ten minutes before seven the next morning.

It had beeped only a few times before a low groan emerged from the closed upper bunk on the passenger side of the bus. Lance rolled over and laid there staring up at the ceiling, listening to clock beep for several minutes before he heard a low, familiar grumble from the bunk below his and a soft snuffling sound. He rolled his eyes and let the beeping continue, sure Joey wasn't really awake and putting off getting up himself as long as humanly possible.

After a dozen more strident beeps Joey finally said something mildly intelligible, proving he was awake. "Baby, shut off th' damn clock 'fore I hafta kill it."

Lance snorted and threw open his curtain, letting in the bright sunlight from the skylight between the bunks as he blinked a few times. He rolled out of his bunk a moment later to land with a thud in the aisle, stumbling almost immediately over something and then kicking the offending clothing aside. "I oughta let it keep beeping until you're all up," Lance grumbled to nobody in particular as he walked to the bathroom to turn off the alarm.

Within five minutes of getting out of bed Lance was usually as wide awake as Chris on a sugar high and in just as good a mood, but he could be a definite grouch until he woke up completely. It drove the other four guys crazy that he could ever be _happy_ to be awake before ten, but Lance's deep voice had pulled them out of sleep in person or by phone almost every morning for so long that they were finally used to it. They all often partied or just goofed around until the wee hours of the morning so Lance usually woke them up slow and easy, but every once in a while someone would get awakened rather abruptly by a glass of ice water and an evil little grin that kept them grumbling about his morning person status. Of course, he also usually got them where they were supposed to be, wide-awake and ready for whatever was expected of them, so they didn't grumble too much.

Lance stayed in the bus' tiny bathroom long enough to pee, brush his teeth, and comb his hair, and by the time he came out he was wide awake and smiling. He headed straight to Chris' bunk and pulled the curtain open, grinning when Joey covered his eyes with a groan and Chris burrowed in against Joe's shoulder, hiding his face.

"Okay, guys," Lance said with a grin. "Up and at 'em." He bent to grab their blanket and yanked it off the bunk, unable to stifle a laugh at what he saw. Joey was wearing the god-awful pink and lime green happy face boxers Justin had given him as a gag gift last Christmas, and Chris - who usually slept naked so that was no surprise - was wearing only a pair of bright blue socks with a small hole in the toe.

When Chris and Joey hadn't opened their eyes after another minute or two, Lance said in a warning tone, "C'mon you two, we have things to do this morning."

They had time to wake up slowly since neither took more than five minutes to get ready, but he knew they were like a pair of puppies. Lance had said get up so he'd better make sure they really did or he'd never get them out of bed the next time. Lance's eyes narrowed when there was still no response, and he let his gaze roam slowly over Chris' sleeping body as he debated how he'd wake them up this time. An evil little grin bloomed on his face a few moments later.

Joey finally took his arm off his eyes rather hurriedly when he heard the rather obvious sound of someone slapping bare skin.

Chris let out a loud yelp and scrambled to put Joey between himself and the aisle. " _Jesus_! Don't _do_ that!" He'd landed half crouched against the wall by Joey's feet, glaring at Lance and trying to scrub the sleep out of his eyes with one hand as he rubbed his butt with the other.

Lance's grin was completely unrepentant as he tossed Chris a pair of clean boxers out of one of the drawers above the bunk. "So get up when I tell you to next time. We all have to be dressed and ready for that interview in an hour, and I don't intend to let _anyone_ be late. I'm gonna go drag the other two off the couch. By the time I'm back you'd better be up or I'll do more than swat your ass."

Lance winked at Joey as he turned away to let him know the threat wasn't entirely serious and then headed towards the back of the bus. When he slid open the door to the lounge, he couldn't help but stop to look at the pair on the couch. The soft light coming through the sheer curtains brought out the highlights in JC's hair and made Justin's tan seem even more golden than usual as Justin slept flat on his back with JC sprawled across his chest. They looked so right together, so beautiful, that Lance found himself just wanting to watch them for a bit even though he should have been waking them up.

Lance watched JC sleep for a long moment before his eyes moved to Justin's face and met dark blue eyes and a soft, sleepy smile. "Time to get up, Curly," Lance said quietly then, smiling at Justin. "We gotta be ready to go in less than an hour." Justin nodded slightly just as Lance felt something brush against his back, followed by Joey's arms coming around him from behind and a prickly cheek rubbing gently against his ear.

"Mornin', glory." Joey mumbled, his breath tickling Lance's skin as he lowered his head to kiss Lance's shoulder. "Chris says he's gonna kill you, you left a handprint on his ass."

Lance leaned back against Joey's chest with a chuckle and watched as Justin shifted carefully, trying to get more comfortable without disturbing JC. Waking JC up was exactly what he was supposed to be doing, but Justin evidently wanted to watch him sleep a few more minutes and Lance decided to indulge him a bit, just this once.

"He'll live," Lance said quietly after a moment, running his hands over Joey's arms as the taller man nuzzled his neck, enjoying the familiar feel of stubble and facial hair against his skin. He knew Joey would be careful not to leave any marks on him, so he could relax and just soak up the affection.

"I know he will," Joey said finally with a grin, "but he's still pissed." He propped his chin on Lance's shoulder to watch Justin rub JC's back and whisper to him too softly for them to hear.

After a few minutes Chris squirmed past them to stop next to Lance and give him a dirty look, ignoring it when Joey lifted his head and grinned at him.

"You're going down tonight, Bass," Chris said quietly and then turned to look at the pair on the couch, his glare softening into a smile when he saw them.

Lance just grinned and went back to watching Justin and JC, thinking they had a few more minutes before he'd go drag them off in the floor. JC hadn't gotten nearly as much sleep last night as he usually did, and he knew Justin was enjoying holding him while he slept, so they could have a few more minutes.

Joey kissed Lance's cheek and released him then to head towards the bathroom, talking as he went. "Better not try anything, Chris. Lance is _always_ up before you and he never forgets anything."

JC's voice came from the couch then, slightly muffled but full of amusement. "Don't pull on Superman's cape, don't spit into the wind, and don't mess around with Scoop." JC finally moved a few seconds after he spoke, lifting his head and folding his arms on Justin's chest to prop his chin on them. "Hi," he said quietly, blinking a little as he looked into Justin's dark blue eyes and tried to wake up.

Justin smiled back and moved his hand up to brush the hair off JC's forehead. "G'mornin', beautiful. Sleep good?"

JC nodded, giving Justin a sweet smile that made his blue eyes shine. "Slept great. Always have thought you make a good pillow, but it's even nicer now that I can just climb up in the middle of you and get comfortable."

Justin chuckled, the vibration of his chest moving JC's whole body. "You make a pretty good blanket yourself."

"C'mon you two," Lance said from the door, grinning. "You can sweet-talk later, you've got about thirty minutes to get dressed and ready for that interview." They really had more like forty-five minutes, but Lance wasn't about to tell them that because then they wouldn't hurry.

Chris watched as the two on the couch ignored them for about thirty seconds, still staring into each other's eyes, then he snorted. "Okay Lance, they didn't move when you said to. Go slap _JC's_ ass. Fair's fair."

JC turned his head to look at them then, grinning impishly. "Awww.... Didn't wittle Chrissy get out of bed when Daddy Bass told him to?"

Lance and Justin both grinned at the look on Chris' face.

"I'll show you _'little Chrissy',_ " Chris growled as he started forward, heading straight for the couch with an intent look.

JC scrambled to his feet and dodged away from Chris with wide eyes, trying hard to talk his way back out of the hole he'd just dug for himself. "Aw man, come _on_ , Lance hit you, don't take it out on _me_! I wouldn't mess with your butt, dude, you're too hairy."

Justin sat up on the couch so he could see better, grinning. That argument wasn't going to help JC's cause, he was sure of it.

Chris stopped in the middle of the room, looking indignant. " _Hairy_?!"

JC relaxed slightly, glad Chris had stopped, and said the first thing that came to him. "It's not your fault. Some people just have more body hair than others, and you're one of them. Like Joe."

Chris started after him again, his eyes narrowing. "Just because you still have trouble growing a _goatee_ doesn't mean I'm _hairy_! Not everyone can be pretty and baby-smooth."

"Hey, I can _too_ grow a beard!" JC protested even as he backed away. "And I'm not _pretty_! Girls are _pretty_!"

Chris snorted and lunged for him. "You _are_ a girl, Spazz. Everyone knows that but you!"

Justin and Lance were both laughing by then, watching from opposite sides of the room as JC avoided Chris' first two attempts to grab him and then was body slammed into the pile of beanbag chairs with a loud rustle. JC tried to shove Chris off of him and almost succeeded, but Chris started tickling him and JC was soon laughing so hard he was reduced to squirming ineffectively as he tried to avoid Chris' wiggling fingers.

Joey walked in past Lance then, barefoot but already dressed, and flopped down on the couch next to Justin. He watched Chris tickling JC for a minute before he reached over and poked Justin, grinning. "Hey you, aren't you gonna help your man?"

Justin turned his head and grinned at Joey. "Hey, you're right! Josh is mine now, he said so himself. I like the sound of that."

Joey laughed and swatted him lightly on the back of the head. "Jup, dumbass, he's _always_ been yours, you were just too dense to notice. And right now he's getting tickled to death because you aren't helping him."

Justin looked back over at JC, who was giggling so hard that tears were running down his face as he twisted under Chris' grinning assault. "I probably should go help him, huh?" he asked Joey with a big grin as Lance sat down on Joey's other side, still wearing boxers and a t-shirt.

Joey laughed. "Yeah, he might appreciate it, Curly. You can toss the Critter over here if you want, me 'n Lance'll make him behave."

Lance grinned and nodded. "We won't let him tackle you again."

Justin returned the grin and stood up, thinking that 'Critter' fit Chris pretty well. "Thanks, I will."

Justin crossed the room quickly and grabbed Chris, picking him up bodily off JC to carry him, fighting and yelling all the way, over to drop him in Joey and Lance's laps. Justin watched them for a second to be sure they had a good hold of Chris - who didn't seem to be fighting _them_ that much, to tell the truth - then turned to look back at JC, who was sprawled on the pile of beanbag chairs as he weakly wiped away tears, still giggling softly. Justin decided then that it'd be fun continue where Chris left off and took a step towards JC, grinning wickedly.

JC looked up and saw his face, then immediately shook his head and threw up one hand, his eyes huge even though he couldn't help but grin. "Don't you dare!"

Justin just grinned a little bigger and moved across the small lounge, looking positively wicked. JC tried to get up off the shifting pile of beanbags, managing to get up on one knee. He put one hand on Justin's stomach to try and keep him back, looking up at him with his best pleading expression as he tried not to grin too much and ruin it. "C'mon baby, _please_? I already have to go _really_ bad."

Justin's grin turned to a pout for all of three seconds, then he shrugged and grabbed JC's hand, pulling him to his feet easily. "Okay, okay, go. I can play with you later, it's not like I'm letting you out of my sight today."

JC grinned and gave Justin a quick kiss on the cheek, then headed towards the bathroom, talking as he went. "Thanks. Make sure they save me some breakfast, okay, baby?"

Justin snorted and watched JC walk down the hall, calling after him, "Yes _sweetie_." Hearing JC call him 'baby' was nice, but even a good thing could be overused. He turned back towards the couch to see Lance and Joey sitting there grinning like idiots with Chris still sprawled across them both and grinning just as big.

Joey turned his head to look at Lance, giving him sappy smile and batting his eyes at him. "What's for breakfast, sugarplum?"

Lance grinned at Joey and made a kissy face at him, then said, "I dunno, honey. We're supposed to grab something after the interview."

Justin just nodded and grinned at them. "Go ahead guys, laugh it up! I don't care _what_ you say, you're not gonna bring me down. I got all I ever wanted."

JC's voice came down the hallway then over the sound of running water, singing, "You're all I ever wanted... You're all I ever needed, so tell me what to do now, 'cause I want... you ... back!"

They all joined in with JC by the second line, then kept going when he stopped singing at the second verse. Joey and Lance laughed and pulled their feet up out of the floor as Justin improvised the choreography in the lounge which, while big for a bus, was tiny when used as a dance floor. During the third chorus JC ran in wearing only a pair of boxers and his ever-present necklace to join Justin dancing, both of them laughing as they did a loose approximation of the 'official' moves to the song.

When they reached the end, Justin pulled JC close to kiss him, deepening it steadily until JC pushed him back, making a face. " _Eww_ , morning breath tastes even worse if it's somebody elses. Go brush your teeth!"

Justin laughed and headed for the bathroom to use it and do his teeth, grinning at himself in the mirror as he shaved until he noticed the clock. He finished in quickly then and went to dig out boxers, jeans, a t-shirt and a button-down to wear for the interview, dodging Lance and Chris as they dug out clothes for the day. Once Justin was dressed he realized JC hadn't come to his bunk yet so he started through the bus looking for him, heading to the back first and laughing at the sight that greeted him.

Chris was standing on the couch in boxers and a t-shirt with a pair of jeans draped over one shoulder, bouncing happily while he sang the _Scooby Doo_ theme along with the TV. Joey was rummaging through the pile of shoes in the corner looking for two that matched, grumbling about not being able to find his Doc Martins and occasionally pausing to grin at Chris' antics. Justin headed back towards the front of the bus, checking the bathroom and the bunks - where Lance was digging through Joey's suitcase for some reason - before he finally found JC in the tiny kitchen area.

JC was still in nothing but boxers and his necklace, moving easily to music only he could hear with that liquid grace that always made Justin want to stop and stare. Justin did just that, grinning as he watched JC twirl suddenly and then sway down the aisle towards the front of the bus doing what looked like a slow version of the mash potato. Justin spoke up as JC danced past the table, not really wanting him to get all the way up to the driver in just his underwear. "Josh, _c'mon_ , get some clothes on! We'll be there in about fifteen minutes and it'll take you that long to get dressed, not to mention doing your hair."

JC jumped and gave Justin a quick guilty grin, then walked over and wrapped his arms around Justin's neck to kiss him. "Mmm, _much_ better," he said when he finally pulled away a bit, smiling. "You used my toothpaste."

Justin laughed, his hands resting on JC's hips. "And your razor. I couldn't find mine."

"Good, I hate that stuff you usually brush with." JC grinned and kissed him again, quickly this time, then slipped past to go to his bunk to look for some clothes.

Justin followed him, smiling, and while JC looked through a drawer he looked in JC's suitcase. He dug past several layers of clothes before he finally found the pair of black jeans he was after, the stretchy ones that fit JC like a second skin. "Here, wear these."

JC looked up from the green shirt he'd just picked out and grinned as he took the jeans. "Sure baby, whatever. Make sure you do your hair, it's all flat."

"You get dressed, I'll worry about my 'fro." Justin grinned and grabbed a pair of socks off JC's bunk before he headed back towards the lounge again. He wasn't at all surprised to find Lance ready to go and sitting on the couch with Joey next to him, putting on a pair of tennis shoes and looking none too happy about it. Chris was ready to go too, pacing back and forth in front of the now silent television with barely restrained energy as he drank a Dr. Pepper.

"What happened to Scooby?" Justin asked with a grin.

Chris paused and glared at the television a second, then kept pacing. "I already saw the one with the fat lady and the candy factory."

"Like there is a single episode of Scooby Doo we _haven't_ seen a dozen times?" Lance asked with a smile, watching Chris pace and wondering idly if the Dr Pepper was really a good idea. Coffee would have been even worse, but they didn't have any this morning so he didn't have to worry yet about the caffeine high that would surely hit after Chris drank his usual three cups with breakfast.

Chris just stuck his tongue out at Lance and kept pacing, sipping at the Dr. Pepper as he walked. He was hungry, but he was used to being hungry when they were stuck on the bus. Their little refrigerator didn't hold a whole lot, and they had finished off the leftovers that were in it the day before.

Justin rolled his eyes and dodged past Chris, going over to the couch and dropping to one knee to reach under it and feel around for his shoes. Within a few seconds he had three shoes, but two were JC's - of two different pairs - and the third was one of Chris' so it didn't really help him any. The other guys could all wear Justin's shoes if they wanted to, but everyone else wore at least a size smaller than he did, even Joey. Having big feet was a serious pain in the butt sometimes, especially if Joey or JC was wearing the shoes he wanted to wear.

Justin tossed the mismatched shoes towards the pile in the corner by the TV and moved to the other end of the couch, pushing Lance's leg out of the way with a grin before he ducked down and felt around again. Almost immediately he hit the jackpot, finding both of his Converse hightops behind JC's other loafer. He jumped up and tossed JC's shoe over to the ones he'd already found, then sat on the arm of the couch to pull on his socks and shoes. Once he had them on he watched Chris pacing with a grin, wondering how they would keep him still for the interview.

JC, dressed and with his hair done, finally walked in just as the bus pulled to a stop outside the studio. He handed Justin a comb and a tube of gel. "Here, baby. Do your hair, we're there."

Justin took the comb and the gel with a wry grin and began dutifully dragging the comb through his curls. He wasn't really paying attention to his hair though, instead watching JC cross the room and bend over to pick up his shoes.

 _Those jeans were definitely a good idea_ , Justin thought with a big grin, watching JC bend over again to pull the comfortable old pair of loafers on with no socks.

JC turned back to see Justin grinning and watching him, half of his hair poofed out wildly and half still flat, and laughed. "Baby, _stop_ , you're just making it worse! Let me do it." He walked back over and took the comb from Justin, ignoring the amused looks on the faces of the other guys as he started carefully combing out the dense curls. Justin's hair was so thick and curly that it really did resemble an Afro half the time, especially if Justin combed it out. He didn't have the patience to do it carefully and it would poof out in all directions.

Ten minutes later the security team had finished their check and Lonnie was at the door of the bus to get them, glad to find the guys were all ready to go and grinning ear-to-ear. "Good job, boss. I don't know how you get these clowns going every morning," Lonnie said, shaking his head. "When you and Joe were off doing that movie we just had JC, Justin, and Chris to worry with in the morning, and we were _still_ late half the time."

Lance just grinned at the bodyguard and followed as Chris led the way off of the bus, waving to the fans who were gathered around the doorway to the studio squealing and screaming just like they always did. The guys all waved and shook some hands, promising to sign autographs on the way out, then disappeared into the building.

 

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

 

 

~~~~5~~~~

 

Not quite half an hour later Justin was sprawled in a hard plastic chair that was more comfortable than it looked, smiling softly at JC, who was sitting across the room from him. He'd been watching JC read a fashion magazine for about fifteen minutes while Chris and Joey argued with Lance over where they would go to eat after the interview, thinking to himself that his life was now officially perfect. His family didn't ever have to worry about money again, he got to travel and play on stage and spend almost every day with his four best friends, and now he knew that JC loved him too.

That was more than a little amazing to Justin -- that JC could love him -- but he had no doubts that he did. They'd talked between kisses for a long time after the others went to bed, and had learned a lot about each other. JC now knew Justin had never even kissed someone and meant it, and Justin knew JC had spent hours a day daydreaming about Justin for years and let the world think he was just lost in his music. Remembering that made Justin grin because JC seemed to be off in la-la land about three-fourths of the time.

A red-haired gofer stuck his head into the green room then and cleared his throat, making Justin and the others look up. "Guys? I'm Kyle. If you'd just follow me please?"

Justin stood immediately, watching as JC tossed the magazine back on the table and stood with the others, then they all followed Kyle out of the room and down a hallway to a closed door with a bright red _on-air_ sign lit up over it.

Kyle put a finger over his lips as he led them into the huge room, skirting around the set that was being used to guide them to one on the far side of it. He stopped there and pointed towards a rather small leatherette sofa. "Just find a seat on the couch there and get comfortable," he whispered. "You guys will go on in about four minutes."

Lance and Chris exchanged a look. They could both tell at a glance that the couch was obviously too small for them all, so Lance stopped Kyle as he started off. "Excuse me," he whispered, "are there any stools we can put behind the couch or something?"

Kyle looked at him sympathetically. "I'm sorry, wish I could help but that's the way they want it, and we don't have time to change it now." He shrugged and then left at a trot to do whatever it was he did, leaving them standing on the stage.

"Great," Chris said softly, looking at the couch. It would comfortably hold three of them, four if Joey stood and JC and Justin scrunched together. There was no _way_ it was gonna hold all five of them unless two of them sat in somebody else's lap, and that would go over like a lead balloon.

Lance frowned at the couch a few seconds, thinking, and then moved forward, pushing JC gently towards the couch as he whispered, "C, you hop up on the back of the couch on the end there. Justin, you sit between JC's feet with Joey next to you, and Chris can sit up on this end with me between his feet. Sound okay?"

Joey and Justin were already nodding and moving towards the couch when Lance looked over at them, and Chris waited for them all to sit down before he climbed up over the back of the couch to sit behind Lance. "This was a good idea, Scoop," Chris whispered.

"It's the way we sat for _The View_ in June, or pretty close to it. I just happened to remember." Lance answered softly with a shrug and a smile, leaning his shoulders back a bit more between Chris' knees as he tipped his head sideways to look up at him.

Chris grinned down at him, giving Lance a quick wink as he whispered, "You're _good_."

They all looked over towards the stage across the room then as it suddenly erupted in noise and motion, a loud voice calling, "Places everyone! Two minutes to live on B!"

The guys soon saw the man who would interview them, a dark-haired older man in a navy suit, hurrying over. He stopped to shake hands quickly with them all, smiling. "Mornin'! Welcome back to Nashville, my name is Gary in case you don't remember me from last time. Sorry about the couch, I _tried_ telling the stage manager we needed a bigger one after half of O-Town had to stand a week ago, but _nobody_ really listens to me around here. I'm just supposed to get the guests to talk and look pretty for the cameras, not actually think." He gave them a quick grin then and cocked his head to look them over, finally nodding. "Glad you managed to figure out how to fit on the couch, you look great like that. Anything new that you want me to mention, or do I just go through the usual stuff?" Gary sat down in the chair facing the couch and took a drink of coffee, watching them intently.

The other four guys all looked at Lance, who was waiting for just that as he grinned at them and then looked at Gary and said, "No, nothing new, just what's in the packet."

"Good, then we're ready to go," Gary said with a quick nod and a smile.

They all sat quietly for a moment until someone off stage called out, "Fifiteen seconds people, quiet on set!" Gary gave them a wink and sat up a little straighter, a smile plastered on his face as he looked at the camera and waited for the green light.

"Welcome back! Next up this morning we have some special guests, the five men crowned the _Kings Of Pop_ at this year's Video Music Awards... 'Nsync!" Gary gave the camera a cheesy grin and then introduced them, each of the guys grinning and giving the camera a little wave when he said their name.

Gary started to interview them then, asking questions that all of the guys could answer half asleep and probably had at one time or another. Chris had said more than once in the past that five half-trained monkeys could have done interviews like this one and he was essentially right, but the guys still did them like they were supposed to, complete with the rote answers Jive had insisted on for years. Lance, JC, and Justin smiled and laughed in all the right places as they answered questions, Chris and Joey broke in with a comment here and there to prove they weren't asleep, and Johnny and the media people were all happy campers.

Chris started getting antsy after the first minute, which was really to be expected, but because of the way they were crowded on the couch he was jiggling his knee against Lance's shoulder instead of just bouncing his foot like he usually did. Lance just sat there and tolerated it at first, but after trying hard to ingore it for few minutes he reached over his shoulder to stop Chris' knee, then dropped his hand back to his lap. Lance made a mental note that Chris would sit with Joey next time since Joe didn't mind him fidgeting, and that Dr. Pepper was _not_ allowed before interviews, no matter what. It evidently had the same effect as a few cups of coffee, which was always a bad idea before Chris had to sit still for something. That was why breakfast had been scheduled _after_ the interview, after all, and in hindsight Lance knew it really hadn’t been very smart to offer Chris that Dr. Pepper.

Five minutes after they went on the air, the light on the camera finally flicked out again and Gary jumped up with a grin as the organized chaos of the studio swirled off to another stage for the next segment. "Thanks guys, you were _great_! Good luck with the concert tonight, my niece will be there cheering you on." He waved and dashed off to the other set without giving them a chance to say anything, and the guys exchanged bemused grins.

Chris stood on the couch as soon as Gary was gone and stepped across Joey's lap, flopping down and then squirming around until he was flat on his back in Joey and Justin’s laps with his head in Lance's lap. Chris looked up at Lance with his version of Justin's 'I'm so sweet and lovable you have to do what I want' look, begging for all he was worth. Chris couldn't pull the look off, but he still gave it a try when he really wanted something, like now.

" _Laaance_ , I was a _good_ little boy, can we go eat now? We passed a Dunkin Donuts on the way here."

Lance gave Chris tolerant grin, looking down at him and absently straightening an errant wisp of Chris’ hair for a few seconds as he pretended to think before he answered him. "I guess so, but you'd better behave for that photo shoot today, or I swear you'll regret it. The sugar in those donuts will have you even higher than you are now for the rest of the day."

"I know, that's why I love 'em!" Chris said as he grinned and jumped up. "But I'll be good anyway, I promise." He paused a second, waiting for the others to stand and follow him, then went on with an impish grin. "Well, good for me at least."

The same red-haired gofer who'd led them in ran up, looking harried. "They're on the air in just a few seconds, so _please_ be quiet! If you'll follow me I'll show you out."

Lance nodded and whispered, "Sorry, we're coming."

They followed him through the maze of cables and equipment, and after a minute or so they all emerged in the hallway.

"Thanks for coming guys," Kyle said, giving the group a quick smile before he turned to go back in.

JC stopped Kyle with a hand on his arm. "Just a sec. Gary mentioned his niece is coming to the concert tonight. Is there somebody we could leave a backstage pass for her with?"

Joey, Justin, and Lance just grinned, but Chris rolled his eyes and said, "Aw C, come _on_ , we're supposed to be going for donuts, dude! Breakfast of champion cops and popstars and all that jazz. If he wanted passes for her he would have asked us, everybody else does."

Lance poked Chris and said, "Chris, behave! JC's right, we should leave passes for the girl and whoever is going with her."

Kyle gave them a much brighter smile then. "Gary's niece is sixteen and _loves_ you guys, I know she'll really appreciate anything you let me pass on to her. She hangs out here a lot in the afternoons and was pretty upset she would have to miss you guys being on the show because her mom wouldn't let her ditch school."

JC smiled at Kyle. "Well, if you'll follow us back to the bus I can get you a backstage pass for tonight and some other stuff, too. We've got copies of the next single and some posters."

Kyle grinned. "Oh _wow_ , Liz will love me forever! You guys go ahead, let me tell somebody where I'll be and then I'll be right out." He ducked back in the studio and then the group started down the hall.

Joey led the way, followed by Justin, Lance, JC and then finally Chris. Chris bounced along behind Justin and Lance with barely restrained energy for about five seconds before he jumped on Justin's back with a cackle of laughter, wrapping his arms around the tall young man's neck. "Giddy up, Jup. Let's get out of here."

Justin laughed and jumped a bit, nearly making Chris fall off, then took off down the hall at a lurching gait that made Chris whoop and hold on tight as he bounced around on Justin's back. The other three watched them go, exchanging grins.

"Those two are like a couple of four year olds stuck in adult-sized bodies," Lance said wryly as Justin and Chris disappeared around a corner. "I hope they remember not to go outside without Lonnie."

Joey snorted, knowing Chris wouldn't bat an eye at ducking security and Justin would go along with him given half a chance.

JC spoke up then with a smile. "They won't remember, but Lonnie is waiting by the main door with Dre and Scott. Even if they somehow avoided Lonnie there's no way they'd get past them all."

They kept walking and were almost to the main entrance when they heard running footsteps behind them and JC glanced back to see Kyle hurrying to join them with a big grin. "Sorry, had to find somebody to take over for me for a few minutes."

"No problem, man," Joey said with a smile. "We're not in a hurry now."

They rounded a corner then into the foyer to see Lonnie and two of his guys watching from near the door while Chris and Justin wrestled around on the floor like two overgrown puppies, much to the amusement of the receptionist.

Lonnie looked up when he noticed them and gave Lance a wry grin and a shrug. "They're dirty, but they're safe," the big black man said in a bass rumble that made Lance's own deep voice sound high by comparison.

"Doesn't matter if they get dirty now, we've got to change again for the photo shoot anyway." Lance said with a grin as he walked over to the other two, reaching down to poke Justin's back. "C'mon, Curly, let's get going. You two can wrestle on the bus."

Justin jumped to his feet with a big grin, offering Chris a hand up. "Okay. Now that you guys are here Lonnie will let us go outside anyway."

Lonnie spoke from next to the door then, looking out at the crowd. "You boys promised autographs on your way in, remember? The gawkers got bored and left, but there are about fifty fans still waiting."

The guys exchanged wry looks. Fifty autographs would take twenty minutes, if not more, and they all wanted to get to breakfast. After a moment Chris asked, "How long until we have to be at the photo shoot, Scoop?"

Lance checked his watch. "Have to be there at noon, and it's fifteen ‘til nine now. Getting breakfast won't take us long, so we've got a couple hours to play with this morning."

Chris shrugged. "Then let's go put our names on pieces of paper for the kiddies like good little boybanders. Justin, you go get the stuff for Gary's niece while we get started signing, okay?"

Justin nodded and went out the door with Lonnie at his heels, the other guys following them with Dre and Scott falling in behind Lance and JC. Lonnie had left two of his guys outside to watch the crowd and another at the door of their bus when they went in, and when they got outside the two who'd waited there immediately moved to follow Joey and Chris.

Kyle stopped just outside the door to the station and watched as the four pop stars began working the crowd, beginning to see why Liz thought they walked on water. O-Town had been there not too long ago, drawing a crowd of similar size, and they hadn't bothered signing autographs _at all_ , much less made time before their own breakfast to sign one for _everyone_. These five were doing just that and even joking with each other and the fans while they signed things, just generally being very nice and acting as though they didn't really mind. A bodyguard was within arm's reach of each of the guys the whole time, but otherwise they were walking right up to the crowd of people and signing everything from CDs to clothes, pausing often to shake hands, give someone a quick hug or say something to a fan.

Justin was back off the bus after a few minutes with two compact discs and a poster that he quickly brought over to the red haired gofer. "Here you go," Justin said with a grin, handing over two slim plastic cases and what looked to be a rolled-up poster. "Our newest CD, the next single and a poster, all signed. Oh, and the passes! I almost forgot them." Justin pulled two plastic-coated passes on lanyards from his back pocket and gave them to him. "I couldn't find the single-show passes, but these will get Liz and a friend in backstage at any of our concerts. Anything else I can do?"

Kyle shook his head, grinning for all he was worth. "Wow! No, you guys have done _plenty_ , thanks! Liz will really appreciate this, I know, she idolizes you five. Thanks again guys!" He raised his voice for the last part and the guys all glanced over and waved before they went back to working the crowd.

Justin grinned moved over to start giving out autographs as well, stopping with each girl and talking to her unless she was crying or looked overwhelmed. The criers and the ones who got really pale had a habit of fainting or getting nuts if the guys got too close, and JC had made him promise yet again just the day before not to give them any encouragement.

Thirty-five minutes after they got outside, the guys finally climbed back on the bus. Joey, Justin, JC, and Chris all found seats around the table at the front for the ride to go get breakfast, laughing and talking.

Lance paused by the driver long enough to let him know where they wanted to go next before he moved into the kitchen area to get drinks for everyone, swaying easily with the movement of the bus as it pulled out of the studio parking lot. He was glad to find a thermos of coffee waiting in the sink and more drinks in the little fridge, and he made a mental note to thank Lonnie as he dug in the cabinet for the anti-tip travel mugs they used when they weren't drinking straight from a bottle. A few minutes later he walked back to the table with two half-full travel mugs of coffee in one hand and three bottles in the other, grinning when he saw they'd remembered to leave him a seat on the outside this time. He gave Justin and JC each a bottle of Mountain Dew and Joey his Dr. Pepper, then handed Chris a mug of coffee and sat down across from him in the empty seat next to Justin.

"Thanks, Lance." JC opened his Dew and took a sip, then asked, "What kind of photo shoot is this today, do you know?"

Lance nodded. "It's for J-14. We're supposed to do the usual teeny mag bit, posing together and then separately. They're providing the wardrobe and one of our people is gonna meet us there to do our makeup. According to the schedule Johnny gave us, it's supposed to take less than an hour but that usually means it may take as long as two."

Lance didn't bother to say they'd all know that if they had read their copies of the itinerary. After years of traveling with the others, he knew that wasn't going to happen. Chris had made paper airplanes with his and Justin's at the concert several days ago, and JC had written music on the back of his during the meeting Johnny where had passed them out to begin with. Lance hadn't seen Joey's but knowing him it was still in that meeting room in Chicago, probably folded into some weird bird or dinosaur. Joey didn't look like the type to know what origami _was_ , much less like someone who would be able to do it rather well, but when Justin was playing around with it on a long bus ride back in Europe Joey had too out of sheer boredom. Justin had given it up quickly when he realized origami was harder than it looked, but Joey seemed to have a talent for it. Every once in a while one of the guys would find an odd little paper animal sitting on their bunk or tucked in a suitcase.

They all were quiet for a few minutes after Lance told them about the photo shoot, drinking and looking at each other or at the table until Chris made a face and looked at Lance. "Do you know where my Gameboy is? Photographers taking individual pictures of everyone will leave me with nothing to do for a _while_."

Lance smiled. "Don't worry, it's in my backpack along with Justin's, a dozen games for them, a book for Joe, and one of JC's notebooks."

JC, Justin, and Joey laughed then at the look on Chris' face. Lance was usually a step or two ahead of them and today seemed to be no different.

"I don't know what we'd do without you," JC said with a grin.

Lance snorted and then grinned and said, "You'd all be late for everything, if you ever found out you had to go to begin with."

Joey laughed and Chris was about to say something when the bus hit a bump and the driver yelled back to them, "Hey guys? You'll have to walk a bit, the bus won't make the turns in that little parking lot."

Lance looked out and saw they were in the front of a Target lot behind the Dunkin Donuts, then called back, "No problem, Andy, this is plenty close. Thanks."

JC grinned at Justin then and the younger man snorted. "Josh, do not even go there. I _know_ I'm an airhead, you _don't_ have to remind me."

Joey and Chris laughed and then Chris started teasing Justin while the bodyguards' bus pulled up next to them. Lance got up to walk to the front of their bus, grinning and thinking it'd take Justin weeks to live down the complete cluelessness he'd shown the night before, if he could live it down at all. JC in love with the bus driver was about as likely as Lou giving back the money he'd stolen from them in Europe, or maybe Kevin saying 'Nsync really was the better vocal group.

Lance stepped off the bus and stood near the door, waiting patiently while Lonnie sent a couple of his guys go to check out the Dunkin Donuts. When they had given the nearby building their approval, Lance leaned back into the open door of the bus and hollered, "C'mon guys! Get a move on or I'll pick all the donuts!"

Chris ran to the door of the bus then, jumping down the steps to land on the asphalt by Lance with a grin. "Oh no you don't, Bass! I don't want any of the fruity good-for-you crap you eat." JC and Justin laughed and followed him out, leaving Joey behind.

They all stood there a minute before Lance called, "Joe? You coming?"

"Yeah," he hollered back as he went back to his bunk for his wallet, "go ahead, I'll be along in a minute."

Lance shrugged and headed towards the nearby building with JC, Justin, and Chris tagging along, all four of them talking back and forth as they walked. Lonnie was quick to outdistance them and then slowed to lead the way, looking around intently while Dre and Scott brought up the rear.

Back on the bus, Joey rummaged around in his bunk without finding a wallet so he started on the drawers nearby. After a little more searching found two wallets in the back of a drawer below his bunk, neither with any ID in it. One was black and the other was brown, but other than color they were nearly identical leather wallets with similarly generous amounts of money in them. He had no clue which one was his, or even if one was, so he finally just shrugged and stuck the black one in his pocket because it seemed more familiar and then took off to go catch up to the guys.

 


	6. Chapter 6

 

 

~~~~6~~~~

 

Lance stood at the counter inside the restaurant, if you could really call a Dunkin Donuts a restaurant, watching with a little grin as Chris drove one of the servers batty. He kept asking the poor kid crazy questions about the fillings or toppings or whatever flitted through his head, and the guy was obviously frazzled by it but was trying to keep up anyway. Chris already had a full box on the counter in front of him, and the guy serving him was working on a second with no sign of slowing down. Chris obviously wanted to be sure he had plenty of donuts to last through the day and maybe even breakfast tomorrow.

Lance figured rightly that it was because Chris knew he wouldn't go for this again soon and wanted to make the most of it, but he didn't try to slow him down. Chris on a major sugar high was a force of nature Lance tried to avoid when he could, which meant not going to Dunkin Donuts very often, but when they did go Lance always let him get whatever he wanted. Of course, Lance _usually_ let Chris do whatever he wanted if he knew that Chris really wanted it. He was a complete pushover for Chris' pleading look. He knew it and Joey knew it since he had teased him about it a goodly bit, and Lance was pretty sure Chris had figured it out, too.

The lady behind the counter closest to the door was putting together a box of donuts for JC and Justin, mostly chocolate, chocolate covered, chocolate filled, with sprinkles, or all of the above. Those two had almost identical taste in sweets - mainly anything chocolate was good and sprinkles made it better - and they always agreed on what to fill a box of donuts with.

Knowing them, Lance was sure Justin would wind up eating half the box before he noticed JC wasn't really doing more than nibbling at a single donut, which would make Justin insist that JC really ate. Justin would sit back then and watch JC eat three or four donuts before he finally gave in to the older man's pleas for Justin to eat 'just one more'. Those two were nothing if not predictable, and Lance thought it was funny that neither of them realized it. He also thought it was pretty typical of them; both were good at not seeing what was right under their noses even when others pointed it out to them.

Lance was just beginning to seriously wonder where Joey was when he finally came in, walking over to stand next to Lance. "Aren't you hungry, Scoop?" Joey asked, looking up for a second when a couple of middle-aged women at one of the tables started giggling at Chris' antics, then back at Lance with a grin.

Lance grinned back at Joey and then watched as the guy behind the counter tried to explain to Chris that filling was put into the donuts after they were cooked, not before, and that's why there were no donut holes with filling. "Yeah, but I'll wait until JC and Justin get done. Somehow I think the guy helping Chris is gonna need a break after this. What took you so long?"

Joey laughed. "I was getting my wallet. Well, okay, _a_ wallet, I'm not exactly sure it's mine. You're probably right about that guy needing a break too, he looks frazzled."

Lance grinned over at Joey and said, "Your wallet is brown, Joey. Mine's in my pocket and Chris' has a chain on it and was attached to his leather jacket last time I saw it. Justin's is a fugly green nylon thing I think, but he might have a new one again or none at all since he loses them so often. Which one did you find?"

Joey rolled his eyes. "Trust you to know which one is which! I found two but I brought the black one."

Lance laughed, his green eyes sparkling. "JC won't mind, he never knows where his wallet is anyway."

Joey shook his head and grinned and was about to say something when Justin turned towards them, looking sheepish. "Hey Lance, did you bring your wallet?"

Joey laughed and pulled out the one in his jacket pocket, tossing it to Justin. "We were just talking about wallets 'cause I grabbed the wrong one. Here, it's JC's."

JC looked surprised and gave the black wallet a confused look, obviously not recognizing it. "I have a wallet?"

Justin grinned at JC and pulled out a ten to pay for their donuts. "No, you _had_ a wallet; now I do."

JC shrugged and gave him a goofy grin. "Okay, I never remember what I did with it anyway."

Joey and Lance walked up to the counter as Justin paid for his donuts, Lance shaking his head at JC's easy acceptance of Justin keeping his wallet. It was typical of JC, not so much because he expected others to take care of things for him but because simple things like carrying a wallet never occured to him. JC was off in la-la land when other kids were learning about money and color-coordinating their clothes, probably learning to surf or breakdance or something else that most people never really got the hang of but JC did as easy as breathing.

"Justin, you might as well just drop that now, we all know you'll lose it," Lance said with a grin as Justin pocketed JC's wallet, getting a laugh from Joey and a dirty look from Justin. "I'm the only one who ever carries a wallet, and I do it mostly because I _know_ y'all won't. Somebody around here has to have ID and some cash."

"It's a good thing you do, Scoop. I lose mine every time I turn around." JC said as he watched Justin pick up the box of donuts on the counter in front of him.

Justin grinned at Lance. "We're going back to the bus, okay?"

Lance nodded, smiling. "Sure, we'll be along in a bit."

Justin winked at him. "No hurry." Lance grinned at JC's blush and watched them go out with Dre at their heels, then turned back to see what donuts Joey was getting.

Chris slung an arm around Lance without warning, chuckling when he jumped slightly. "Umm... Lance? You know what you were just saying? You're right, we're hopeless. Can I have fifteen bucks?"

Lance just laughed and pulled out his wallet, giving Chris a twenty. "Here, give the guy all of it and tell him to keep the change, he deserves it after what you put him through."

Chris gave him a quick squeeze and bounced off with a grin, calling over his shoulder, "Whatever you say dude, it's your dime!"

Lance just shook his head with a smile and looked back at the lady filling the box, watching only a moment before Joey nudged him and spoke. "Two left, unless you want to get another dozen. I already had her put in two of those blueberry things you like, two apple-cinnamon and a couple Bavarian creams. Anything else you want?"

Lance looked at the trays of donuts and then shrugged. "Not that I can think of, I'll only eat three or four anyway and those sound good."

Joey had the woman put in two lemon filled donuts to finish the box, then looked at Lance with a grin. "If we don't get lunch at that photo shoot, you might be wishing we'd gotten that second dozen."

Lance grinned back at him and paid the woman for their donuts, giving her a generous tip. "Chris bought _three_ dozen, Joe, and even he can't eat that many. We're not going to be hurting for donuts today, I _promise_."

Joey took their box of donuts with a smile and a quick 'thank you' for the lady behind the counter as they turned to leave. They could see through the glass doors that Chris was already almost across the parking lot with one of the other security guys and Dre was standing at the door to the bus talking to Andy, leaving Scott and Lonnie to keep and eye on Joe and Lance.

Scott was standing just inside the door and Lance stopped by him, waving Joey on towards the bus with the donuts. "Here Scott, get you guys some donuts too and some coffee," Lance said, offering him two twenty-dollar bills. "We've got _plenty_ of time, we don't have to be anywhere for a couple hours yet." Scott looked like he wanted to refuse the money, so Lance shook his head and held it out to him. "No buts, take it! You guys are hungry too and I _know_ you won't take time to find someplace to eat until we get to the photo shoot, or knowing y'all maybe even the venue. You can't take care of us if you starve to death," Lance said with a grin.

Scott wavered and gave Lonnie a questioning look, figuring if his boss said it was okay then he could get away with it, and donuts did sound good. When Lonnie nodded after a moment Scott grinned and took the money. "Thanks, boss."

Lance smiled. "You're welcome, it's the least we can do for you guys." He patted Scott's shoulder and walked out, grinning when he heard Lonnie tell Scott to be sure he got some strawberry cake donuts for him.

In just a few minutes Lance was back on the bus with Lonnie and Dre watching the door, having promised to let him know when they were ready to go. There wasn't anyone at the table when Lance got into the bus' little kitchen area so he figured they'd taken their donuts to the back where it was more comfortable. He tossed his jacket on a bench with two others and then headed that way himself, pausing just long enough to grab Joey a drink and refill his coffee.

When Lance walked into the back of the bus he stopped and laughed. Chris was in the middle of the floor with a Mountain Dew and three open boxes of donuts in front of him, powdered sugar already dusted all over the front of his dark blue shirt. Chris just grinned at him and happily munched on another donut, completely unaware - or maybe just not caring - that he had what looked like custard on the tip of his nose.

Lance looked around the room and grinned when he saw that Justin and JC were sitting sprawled on the beanbags, sharing a bottle of Mountain Dew and talking quietly while Justin watched JC eat. Joey was on the couch with their now-open box of donuts, eating something covered in powdered sugar and watching Chris with a grin. Joey looked up then, and when he saw Lance had a Dr. Pepper in one hand he swallowed and said, "Thanks, Scoop. I was just about to go after one."

Lance walked over and sat down by Joey, putting the Dr. Pepper between his leg and the open box of donuts. "No problem, I figured you'd forgotten to grab a drink." He took a long sip of his coffee and then picked out an apple-filled donut and began to eat, occasionally smiling or laughing at something one of the others said or did. Chris just grinned when Justin started making fun of his sugar-covered goatee, but after a few minutes of listening to Justin's ribbing he went to go wash his face. When he came back he flopped down in the floor again to finish his Mountain Dew, almost immediately beginning to pick at Justin because JC called him baby again.

Lonnie walked into the doorway to the back of the bus about thirty minutes later, ignoring the fact that JC and Justin were sitting together on the beanbag chairs cuddling and kissing while Chris, Lance, and Joey discussed plans for their upcoming week off. "You guys want anything else before we head to that photo shoot across town?" Lonnie asked. "You've got almost an hour to play with since it'll only take us thirty minutes to get there."

JC and Justin jumped guiltily when Lonnie spoke, both looking at him wide-eyed until Lance spoke soothingly, smiling at them. "Guys, it's _okay_. Lonnie is cool and so is Dre."

JC relaxed against Justin again, looking relieved, while Justin gave Lonnie a quick smile. Lonnie usually took care of Justin - and by extension JC when they were together - so Justin was really glad to know he wouldn't be weird about them.

"Scott's cool with it too, guys," Lonnie said, "and none of my boys would ever say _anything_ to you or anyone else about what they see you do whether they personally approve or not. You don't have to hide from us, we'll even help you keep it from people you don't want to know, like Johnny."

Joey looked thoughtful at that and JC and Justin both were obviously surprised, but they didn't say anything.

Chris turned to look up at Lonnie like he'd grown a second head. "You'd do that for us? Help us hide it from Johnny, I mean?"

Lonnie smiled at Chris. "We'd do anything short of murder for you guys. Johnny may have hired us way back when, but you guys are the bosses as far as me and my boys are concerned. Our contract says we answer only to you five and has for the last two years, and Lance even signs our checks instead of Johnny. As far as we are concerned Johnny is just making sure Lance and the drivers know where y'all have to be to be and when. Johnny doesn't like it, but that's tough."

JC, Justin, Joey, and Chris were quiet then, absorbing this new information, but Lance wasn't surprised by it. He'd had a long talk with Lonnie before he and Joey went to Toronto, so he already knew all this. "Lonnie, let's go ahead and go to the photo shoot," he said with a smile. "Maybe they'll let us get started early, but even if they don't we won't mind hanging out on the bus a while."

The other guys didn't seem to have anything to add so Lonnie gave Lance a quick nod. "Okay, boss, we're on the way."

Lance smiled at him. "Thanks." Lonnie just nodded again and disappeared off towards the front of the bus.

The other guys looked at the floor or the walls or at each other for a long moment, then finally at Lance just as the bus started again. Chris was the one who spoke, not precisely upset but definitely surprised. "You knew Lonnie's with us? Against Johnny?"

Lance nodded. "Yeah, I've known for a few months now. Lonnie and I had a long talk when Joe and I had to go up north for the movie. He already knew about me and Joey - how he found out I don't know, but he did - and I knew he was okay with it so I told him we needed one of his guys we could trust with us up there, preferably somebody who wouldn't go running to Johnny about anything they might see. He told me then that Johnny has asked him about our private lives and exactly how close we are, and that he'd keep telling him nothing until we asked him to do differently."

Lance paused then to take a sip of his coffee, then went on. "Lonnie was pretty firm on the fact that he feels Johnny tries too hard to run every minute of our lives, and that he and his team will do all they can to make sure we have some private time whenever we ask. He sent Dre with us on the movie shoot mostly to run interference when Joey and I were in our suite, and he told me for us to just let him know if we needed anything else. I told him I'd let you guys know, but I forgot to tell y'all." Lance looked sheepish then and said, "Sorry."

Justin and JC both grinned at the look on his face, and Joey laughed and said, "Scoop, you were memorizing an entire _movie_ just about then, your lines _and_ mine, and most of the rest, too! Forgetting to pass on one message isn't a big deal."

Chris nodded. "Yeah, don't worry about it. I'm really glad to know Lonnie and his guys are on our side though, that'll make keeping everything a secret a lot easier. I've been trying to figure out how we'd keep everything from Johnny."

JC spoke up hesitantly then, looking at the others. "Umm... Do we need to keep it a secret? Should we I mean?"

Joey and Chris looked at him, clearly surprised, and Lance asked, "JC, what makes you think we _shouldn't_ keep it a secret? Most people hate gay men. Sure, some of our fans - maybe even a lot of them going by the fansites on the web - would be okay with it, but we have to think of what their parents would say and how the executives running Jive would take it. Coming out just isn't a good idea, and neither is telling Johnny. He'd start trying to manage this part of our lives too, _after_ he had a screaming fit and told the record label, and might even try to push us onto separate buses like Backstreet's PR people did after Brian and Nick got caught one too many times."

JC looked down at where his hands were holding one of Justin's in his lap, then looked back up. "I know, really, I just don't want to have to hide. I want to be able to hug Justin in public, or to hold his hand when we're walking down a street, or even cuddle with him at a movie without worrying who might see."

Joey put a hand on Lance's leg to stop him just as Lance was about to speak. "Josh, you do all of that _now_ , and have for years," Joey said with a smile. "You two have always hugged, cuddled and held hands - in public or not - and the fans know it and are used to it. Hell, you've even kissed Justin on the cheek on _national television_ and nobody cared! As long as you don't go for a liplock or have sex on stage, people won't bother to comment because it's old news that you two are really close."

"We'll take it one day at a time and everything will be fine, Josh, I promise," Justin said, smiling reassuringly at him. "As far as the media is concerned I have a high-profile girlfriend and I'm lying about having sex with her every time I meet her, and they'd much rather stick with that than tell the world I'm gay and have Brit make fools out of them." He snorted, then went on, "Brit will have a _ball_ playing decoy for us and she'd love to bring along Genoa for you to 'date' when we go out so you can play straight too if you want." Justin squeezed JC's hand then and smiled at him, then after a moment looked at the others and spoke again. "What about you guys, though?"

Lance grinned. "People have said I was gay from the beginning, and I've still been pretending I was straight for years without three of my four my best friends noticing. I think I can fool the fans and reporters well enough, but Em is willing to play beard for me if I ever want her to, and there's that girl from back home who I dated back in high school. It was Laurie's idea then for us to 'date' so the rumors about me being gay would stop and the jocks would quit beating the shit out of me, so I'm sure she'd help again if I asked."

Joey nodded and added, "And nobody would believe I was gay if I said it under oath on 20/20. Kelly may not be good for much, but her saying on that stupid talk show that I went home with a different groupie after every show managed to rather firmly mark me as a player."

Chris laughed. "Good point, Joe." He looked at JC and Justin then and said, "I've always known I was bi and I'm not worried how anyone thinks I act anymore. People say now that I flirt with guys like Carson Daly to fuck with his mind; they don't have a clue that I do it because I've fucked him and don't intend to let him forget it." He grinned wickedly at the looks on the others' faces as he went on, "Carson would be the first to get on MTV and tell the world it was a lie if somebody said one of us was gay, and everyone would believe him because Carson _is_ TRL and TRL is the authority on popular music."

Lance was surprised that Chris had even gotten near Carson, but Joey just looked disgusted. "Chris, dude, I was available, _Lance_ was available, and you fucked Carson 'the dickhead' Daly instead?! I didn't think you were ever _that_ desperate!"

Lance laughed at the look on Chris' face as Chris tried to answer that and his voice wouldn't work. He took a drink of his Mountain Dew and tried again. "Desperate my _ass,_ Joe, it was a _challenge_! I had to work hard to get that prissy fucker to put out! Bought the bastard dinner and then had to take him dancing _twice_ before he finally did more than blow me. Besides, Kid Rock - he lets me call him Brother Bob now--" Chris grinned when he said that, "bet me a pair of custom Harleys that Carson wouldn't put out for me like he did for him. I _had_ to win that bet, I wanted the bikes for me and a friend."

Chris waited for what he'd said to sink in, and sure enough after a minute Justin yelled, "Ewww! You fucked _Carson_ on a bet and then gave me one of the bikes you won?! Man, you are _sick_!" Lance and Joey laughed as Justin reached into the box by him and threw half a donut at Chris, hitting him in the middle of the chest and leaving a choloate smudge on his shirt. "When we get back to Orlando you are going to have that bike _fumigated_ , dude!"

JC still looked surprised, but he'd looked that way for pretty much the last five minutes or so, so nobody thought anything was odd about it until he spoke. "Chris, man, I can't believe Carson _played_ you like that, he must have known you were up to something. He like, _offers_ to let me do him just about every time I see him. I thought he was easy." JC picked up the nearly empty bottle of Mountain Dew laying by his knee, completely missing the looks the others were giving him as he drained it.

Justin spoke first, looking like he expected JC to sprout horns and a tail any second. "Did you?"

JC just looked at him, completely lost. "Huh? Did I what?"

Chris rolled his eyes and said, "Did you fuck Carson?"

JC shuddered and made a face. " _Eww!_ No, that guy makes my skin _crawl_ , he's so _cheap_ , and _smarmy_ , and just... Blech." He shuddered again. "Even the idea is gross." JC jumped up and started towards the front of the bus then, saying, "I gotta use the bathroom, change the subject while I'm gone, please?"

Justin watched him go and then looked at Lance and Joey. "Am I the _only_ one around here who didn't know Carson was gay?"

Lance looked at Joey, waiting for him to answer first, and Joey shrugged. "I knew he wasn't straight, he hit on me when we were on that New Years thing."

Lance laughed. "You're kidding."

Joey shook his head. "Nope, he hit on me right after Gwen sang that REM cover she did."

"Carson was busy that night!" Lance said with a grin. "He messed around with Ashley from O-Town too, and he hit on me just before we left. When I told him I wasn't gay he said 'Don't bullshit me, Bass. Backstreet and O-Town are all good little cocksuckers and I know you guys must be, too.'"

The other three laughed and Chris said, "Dude, I can't believe he said that, he must have been totally smashed."

Lance nodded, grinning. "Yeah, he was, and he wasn't paying attention either because Jacob heard him say it. I thought he was gonna kill Carson, but we didn't get that lucky."

JC walked back in carrying another Mountain Dew, frowning as he caught the tail end of the conversation. "Guys, I thought you were changing the subject?" JC paused in the doorway to open the bottle and take a long drink, closing his eyes as he swallowed.

Justin watched him with a look that was positively predatory while the others exchanged grins. Justin was obviously up to absolutely no good or would be soon. Justin composed his face into a more normal smile as JC lowered the bottle and opened his eyes again. "Come sit down, they'll be good, won't you guys?" He looked over at them and Chris and Joey both nodded, still grinning.

JC looked skeptical until Lance spoke up. "It's okay, Josh, we'll be good," he said with a smile for JC. "Have a seat."

JC gave in then, sure Lance wouldn't help them set him up, and walked over to sit gracefully by Justin.

"Can I have a drink?" Justin asked with a grin, half-heartedly reaching for JC's drink and not at all surprised when JC nodded put it in his hand. He took a long drink and then set the bottle to one side, never taking his eyes off JC as his grin slowly got bigger.

JC had figured out Justin was up to _something_ by then, but he wasn't quite sure if he wanted to avoid whatever it was Justin had planned. He was just beginning to think he really didn't like the look in Justin's eyes when Justin grabbed him without warning, pushing him over onto his back on the beanbag chairs with a decidedly wicked grin.

Justin's hands flitted along on either side of JC's waist then, lightly tickling him as he said, "Lonnie interrupted us earlier. I was trying to count your teeth with my tongue, I do believe."

JC laughed and squirmed, trying quite unsuccessfully to get away from Justin's hands as he pushed at his chest. "You weren't counting teeth, you were diving for tonsils. And stop tickling me!"

Justin grinned wickedly at JC as he almost let him get away, then moved so that he was straddling the older man, sitting on his thighs as he tickled him a little more. "Nuh-uh. You just went to the bathroom, no excuse not to let me play with you this time."

Chris laughed. "He's got you there, C."

Lance and Joey grinned at each other and went back to watching as JC looked up at Justin, giggling now as he squirmed. "C'mon baby," he said, "you don't really want to tickle me. I know _lots_ of things that would be more fun..." JC tried to leer at him, but it didn't work very well when he started giggling again. "No fair! At least give me a _chance_ to distract you!"

Justin shook his head, still grinning, and slid his hands under JC's shirt to tickle bare skin. "Nope. I'm gonna tickle you until you're laughing so hard you can't move, and then I'm going to have my wicked way with you." He started tickling JC in earnest then, making him giggle like a little girl as he squirmed and tried to dislodge Justin without much luck.

Chris grinned and climbed up on the couch next to Lance and Joey to watch. "Justin is _such_ a dom," he said. "JC has no prayer of getting away."

Lance spared Chris a glance before looking back over at the two who were now both laughing and squirming as JC tickled back. "What makes you think he wants to?" Lance asked with a grin.

JC looked over at them then and winked, making Lance chuckle and Joey laugh while Chris just stared. JC dug his fingers into Justin's ribs a little harder then, making him squirm away a bit farther, then suddenly bucked and flipped them over so Justin was on his back on the floor with JC on top of him. "Much better," JC said with a big grin, then ducked forward to kiss him. Justin had already quit tickling, and soon had one hand buried in JC's hair and the other on JC's back, stroking it as JC moved against him.

The three on the couch watched them for a few more minutes as JC and Justin got really serious about making out, then Chris said to nobody in particular, "Y'know, those two are _never_ gonna wait until we have a break in the tour to fuck. Looks like they just might go for it right now, clothes and all."

JC lifted one hand then and flipped Chris off over his shoulder without even opening his eyes.

Lance and Joey both cracked up, laughing even harder when they saw the shocked look on Chris' face.

After spluttering incoherently for a minute Chris spoke, completely offended. "Tell me I did _not_ see that! Joshua doesn't even know _how_ to flip somebody off!" Chris stared at JC's back for a minute with narrowed eyes as Joey and Lance laughed some more, then he jumped to his feet. "Well, he _ain't_ gettin' away with it, I'm gonna go kick his scrawny ass."

Joey laughed and pulled Chris down into his lap. "Justin's playing tonsil hockey with him right now, you can kick his ass later."

Lance laughed, wondering how long Joey thought he could get Chris to be still. Personally, Lance was betting on him bouncing into orbit sometime in the next twenty minutes or so. Chris, donuts and Mountain Dew were an explosive combination.

Chris squirmed around in Joey's lap until he was sitting sort of halfway sideways with one leg across Lance's lap and the other stretched out in front of them, his head turned so he could grin at Joey. " _Tonsil hockey_?! Where do you _get_ those funky little sayings of yours, Joe-bear?"

Lance's eyebrows rose when he heard that. _Joe-bear? And Joey isn't complaining?!_ _Lance_ didn't even get to call him sweetheart! Of course, 'Joe-bear' no worse than 'Critter', but still! Lance had to really watch it sometimes so he wouldn't call Joey 'sweetheart' because Joey had asked him not to use any cute little nicknames, and it wasn't fair that Chris got to have one.

"I'm not telling 'cause then you'd know them all before I get to use them and it wouldn't be fun anymore. Now be still, Critter. I want to get comfy." Joey grinned at Chris and then easily picked him up to settle him across his lap sideways with Chris' legs on Lance's lap.

Chris looked at Joey and then at Lance with an unreadable expression for a long moment before he quietly snuggled down against Joey's chest and tucked his head under Joey's chin, one arm slipping around Joey's waist. "Better?" Chris asked, his voice suddenly quiet and sounding a little odd.

"Much," Joey said as he nuzzled Chris' hair, smiling softly at Lance, then closed his eyes and just held Chris.

Lance smiled and lifted a hand to gently stroke the back of Joey's neck, finally looking over after a moment at where JC and Justin were on the beanbags. They had quit playing around and were curled up together, Justin holding JC spooned up in front of him as they watched the three on the couch, both of them smiling happily. Lance returned their smile and then scooted over a bit so he was against Joey's side before he let his eyes slide closed. He intended to enjoy the moment as long as it lasted. He was as happy as he could remember being in a long, long time.

 


	7. Chapter 7

 

 

~~~~7~~~~

 

"Guys?" Lonnie called from the front of the bus, not wanting to just walk into the back again without warning them. He had noticed earlier that JC and Justin seemed a little uncomfortable with being caught kissing, and he didn't want to surprise them again if he could help it. His five charges seldom had any privacy to speak of and he wanted to let them have as much as he could.

They were due for the photo shoot in fifteen minutes, but he'd not seen hide nor hair of the guys since he talked to them over an hour ago. When their driver told him they'd been very quiet, Lonnie had decided he'd better check on them.

He waited a minute or two and when there was no answer he walked back to their lounge, stopping in the doorway to look at 'his' boys, five young men he'd watched go from being starry-eyed kids to world-weary pop stars. Lance was curled up on the couch against Joey's shoulder with Chris' legs across his lap, relaxed and sound asleep. Chris slept in Joey's lap with his head on Joey's shoulder and Joey's cheek resting against the back of his head as they slept. The three of them didn't look like they could possibly be comfortable to Lonnie, but going by their expressions they were perfectly content anyway.

Lonnie looked over to where he'd seen JC and Justin when he was in there earlier and smiled a little wider. Justin was sprawled over the floor and a beanbag chair with one arm around JC, and JC was sleeping with his head on Justin's chest, one arm across his waist. Lonnie had thought they were lovers for a long time when they were first starting out - almost every day he'd gone in to wake them and found them curled up together in bed - but like everyone else he had eventually figured out that they were just devoted friends. Well, they were _then_ anyway; now they were obviously more than friends, but Lonnie was sure it was new.

Lonnie smiled as he watched the two of them sleep for a moment longer, glad they seemed so happy together, then he walked over to the couch to gently shake Lance's shoulder. When Lance's sleepy green eyes opened, Lonnie whispered, "Hate to wake you, boss, but that photo shoot is supposed to be in about ten minutes."

Lance smiled at him and replied softly, "Thanks, Lonnie. I didn't plan on falling asleep. We'll be out as soon as we can, okay?"

Lonnie patted his shoulder and smiled, then said quietly, "You five needed some time to really relax, and you needed the sleep too or you never could have gotten Chris to hold still after donuts. Those photographers can wait on you guys for a change. Dre and I will be outside when y'all are ready to go, okay?"

Lance nodded and watched Lonnie leave the room, then looked around at the other guys. JC and Justin were sound asleep in each other's arms, as were Chris and Joey even though neither of the later pair looked very comfortable. Lance frowned after looking at Chris for a moment, thinking about what Lonnie had said about Chris and donuts, and reached over to put his hand on Chris' forehead to see if he had a fever.

Chris opened his eyes as soon as Lance touched him though, obviously not asleep, and whispered so softly Lance almost couldn't hear him, "Wake the others first, Joe will take less time to get ready."

Lance nodded, a bit wide-eyed at the realization Chris was wide awake - had been for a _while_ judging by his eyes - and he had still managed to sit absolutely still for almost an _hour_. Chris shifted his legs to let Lance slide out from under them, then closed his eyes again, smiling softly as he snuggled more firmly against Joey's shoulder. Lance got to his feet and moved over to the boxes of donuts Chris had left in the floor, consolidating those three partial boxes with what was left of the two dozen donuts the other four had shared, leaving two empty boxes and three mostly full ones for Lance to put up.

Lance carried the boxes and his coffee mug to the kitchen, throwing the empties in the trash and putting the others in the little refrigerator, then leaned against the counter drinking the last of his cold coffee and thinking. Chris had never, to his knowledge at least, sat still in a quiet room for more than five minutes, and _might_ manage ten minutes if he was engrossed in a really good movie or a complicated video game. Even if Chris had been asleep he probably wouldn't have been still for an hour, but add in that he did that awake after seven donuts and a Mountain Dew and it was almost more than Lance could wrap his brain around. They had often joked Chris was harder to control than a bag of fleas but it was pretty much the truth; it just wasn't _possible_ for Chris to hold still long, especially on a sugar high or if it was too quiet.

Lance finally shook his head and put the coffee mug away. He went back to the back of the bus again, pausing in the doorway to look at the others. JC had shifted so he was laying with one leg thrown across Justin's thighs but otherwise those two were just like they were when he left. He watched them for a moment with a smile, glad they had finally admitted what he'd halfway suspected for years, then looked over at the couch to meet deep brown eyes crinkled in a smile. Lance's eyes widened, then he grinned and started shaking his head. Joey wasn't asleep either!

Lance spoke then without thinking, "Y'all are just too much."

Joey winked at him and shifted slightly before he lifted his head, making Chris open his eyes and turn his head to give Lance a dirty look for 'waking' Joey.

Lance ignored him and walked over to Justin and JC, going down on one knee next to them to shake Justin's shoulder and then JC's. "Wake up, you two," he said quietly, smiling. "We've got to get moving again, we're due for that photo shoot."

Justin groaned and rolled towards JC to bury his face in JC's hair, dislodging the lighter man from his position half on top of Justin. "I don't wanna," Justin whined sleepily. "Tell them I have the flu or something and Josh had to take care of me."

JC chuckled sleepily and gave Justin a squeeze before he pulled away. "You _gotta_ go, baby. You're the one they want pictures of for all the teenies to swoon over."

Justin opened his eyes and looked at JC in surprise. "What about _you_? They wanna see you at least as much as me!"

JC laughed. "Baby, no, they _don't_. You're the one most of our fans would happily die to meet, not me. I'm just the odd artsy guy who just happens to be in the same group as the great Justin Timberlake."

Joey laughed and shifted Chris in his lap, moving him more onto the arm of the couch. "Yeah, Jup, we're just your backup singers, remember?"

Justin snorted and sat up, rubbing his eyes. "Backup singers, my _ass_. Without you guys I'd still be singing at bar mitsvahs."

Chris laughed, shifting a bit to get more comfortable again after Joey had moved him. "Justin, tell me you've never sung at a _bar mitsvah_. That is just... Wrong."

Justin grinned at him and took a drink of the half-full Mountain Dew he'd just picked up, then said, "I could, but I'd be lying. Worst three hours I've spent on stage in my _life_."

JC laughed then, reaching to take the Dew from Justin. "J, you're kidding! Your mom made you do a bar mitzvah?"

Justin nodded. "Yup. It was while you were in California, for the nephew of some guy she was trying to get to hire me for a commercial. I had to dress up in this funky looking _leisure_ suit and sing for about 150 people. It was really boring, but the worst part was the music they chose. I had to sing _Cover Girl_ and _Girl You Know It's True_ and a bunch of 80's crap."

Lance looked lost because he didn't recognize the songs, but JC, Joey, and Chris laughed.

"Oh god," JC said, "you didn't! Singing covers of New Kids music is bad enough, but they made you sing _Milli Vanilli_ too?!"

Lance laughed too then; everyone in pop music had heard of those two acts.

Justin grinned and nodded again. "Yeah, it was _embarassing_. I think my mom even has it on video."

JC grinned and said, "I have _got_ to get a copy of that from her for my 'we made fools of ourselves' collection."

Justin grinned back at him and stood, stretching. "Mom'll dig it out for you I'm _sure_ , right after y'all help me move the rest of my stuff into your place. She'll probably get copies of all those embarassing talent show videos for you too once she knows you want them," he said with a snort.

Justin had left so much stuff at JC's over the years he had his own room and everything, but he still had a room at his mother's house and all kinds of things in the house he shared with Britney. JC had been surprised but pleased the night before when Justin asked if he could move in with him, really move in with him, but JC had immediately said yes. Justin had more stuff than any two of the other guys for the simple reason he was always forgetting he had something and buying another one, but JC knew they could make room in his house for all the things Justin wanted to keep.

JC looked up at Justin. "Are you sure your mom will be okay with you moving in with me? I mean, she won't think I'm taking advantage of you or something?"

Justin bent and kissed JC's forehead, grinning. "Josh, sweetheart, she's known I was in love with you since I was thirteen and, to quote her, 'following you around like a puppy'. She's _always_ been cool with it. Mom loves you almost as much as I do. Did you think she has you call her 'Mom' just to be polite?" Justin asked him with a grin as he offered him a hand up.

JC took the hand and stood, looking at Justin with a slightly dazed look. "Well, yeah, kinda."

Chris laughed and said, "Earth to Josh, come in Joshua! Lynn never told any of _us_ to call her Mom, just you. I've known Lynn had a soft spot for you since day one, dude, I just figured it was because she's known you _forever_ and you always take care of Justin for her when she can't be there."

Lance chuckled and stood, stretching a moment before he started towards the front of the bus. "Alright guys, playtime is over, we gotta get moving again. Uniform for this shoot is T-shirts and jeans or sweats, okay? We'll be changing into whatever the photographer wants for the shoot, but we can keep our own jewelry for this one, so grab what you want to wear."

Lance stopped at his own bunk long enough to grab the cross he always wore in photo shoots - he was already wearing his ring and the silver bracelet the guys got him years ago - then went to the table at the front and sat down to wait for the others.

Chris came and sat down by Lance after just a minute or two, still in the jeans he'd worn that morning but wearing a different t-shirt. "Those two are _never_ gonna change," he told Lance with a grin. "Justin's back there in nothing but a pair of sweatpants, arguing with JC over a turquiose necklace he wants to wear - which is really fugly by the way--"

"I heard that!" Justin hollered.

"He's _right_ Justin, it's _tacky_!" JC said as he walked out to the table, still pulling on a t-shirt over his wifebeater.

Chris went on as though neither of them had spoken. "-- and JC was trying to convince him he didn't need to wear any jewelry at all--"

"Except his diamonds, those are _cool_ ," JC said, sitting down across from them with a grin, absently straightening his necklace so that the knot was in the back again.

Chris snorted and looked at JC as Lance rolled his eyes and said, "Of _course_ you think those are cool, C, when we got them for him you picked them out!"

JC grinned at them and said, "Hey, everyone knows diamonds are always a good choice. I have _good_ taste!"

Joey walked in then with Justin right behind him. When they heard what JC said Joey started laughing and leaned against the counter, but Justin just snorted. "Josh, good taste and you don't even fit in the same _zip code_."

Joey, Chris, and Justin laughed at the shocked look on JC's face while Lance looked them all over to be sure they were ready to go out in public. After a moment he nodded, poking Chris in the side lightly so he'd let him out. "Okay guys, let's go. Lonnie said they'd be ready for us in ten minutes when he woke me up, and that was about fifteen minutes ago."

Chris stood and started towards the front of the bus. "Yeah, right! I bet we get in there and the photographer isn't here yet or something. These things _never_ start on time, I think it's a law."

The others followed him out, laughing. If there was one constant in their lives, it was the fact that their photo shoots almost never ran on time, no matter how hard Lance tried to make them. It was one of the few things Lance complained about, mostly because the photographers' lack of punctuality always messed up the schedules he had memorized and he would often have to adjust things for the rest of the day.

Lonnie and Dre were leaning against their bus in the sun, looking like a couple of vacationing linebackers in their shades and bright blue shirts. Lonnie looked them over and gave Lance a nod before they all started towards the building. "Good timing, guys. The lady interviewing y'all just stuck her head out and said she was ready for you."

Lance looked at Lonnie as they walked, surprised. "What interview? The schedule just says photo shoot."

Lonnie shrugged. "I just know what she said, boss."

Chris grinned at Lance as they went in the door and said, "Does it really matter, Scoop? It's just a _teeny mag_ , it's not like the interview will be _hard_ or anything."

Lance laughed and returned the grin. "I guess you're right. It's _J-14_ , not _Newsweek_."

"Gee, thanks," a woman standing near the receptionist's desk said suddenly, drawing everyone's attention to her.

Lance blushed. "Sorry, ma'am."

Chris poked him and grinned. "Don't apologize, Scoop. At least you knew which teeny mag we're doing this for."

The woman, a brunette who looked to be in her forties, rolled her eyes and said, "Come with me." She turned and stalked off down a hallway, obviously annoyed.

After exchanging glances with each other and the bodyguards, the five guys started after her with Lonnie on their heels, leaving Dre and Scott in the waiting room. They followed the woman to a meeting room and inside, taking seats while Lonnie stood by the door. Joey, Chris, and Justin were on one side of the table, across from JC and Lance with an empty seat at the head of the table by a pile of papers and a tape recorder.

The brunette watched them all sit down, still frowning slightly, then asked, "Is the bodyguard _really_ necessary, boys?"

Lonnie looked at her and then, after a glance at Lance to see if he wanted him to stay, stepped outside and closed the door.

The brunette finally sat down at the head of the table then, moving the papers to one side and looking each of them over before she spoke again. "My name is Rebecca, I'm from the California office here to cover a fashion show. I was just told I'd have to do this an hour ago, so I know very little about you other than what's in this packet. After we get introduced I'll turn on the recorder and get to asking you questions, but I usually don't have anything to do with the teenage pop scene so I won't be asking much."

Chris gave her a dirty look and said, "We don't sing teeny pop."

Rebecca looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "If you say so. And you are?"

Chris gave her a big, obviously faked smile. "Chris Kirkpatrick, otherwise known as the crazy old one."

Rebacca snorted and gave him a condescending look. "Please, I have _shoes_ older than you guys."

The other guys glanced at each other and then Lance spoke up, frowning slightly at Rebecca. "Do you not like musicians or something, ma'am?"

She gave Lance a look with slightly more respect in it. "Direct, I like that. I'm not partial to pop groups, no, but I've also heard bad things about you guys in particular. You've had fame handed to you on a silver platter, you think you're too good to associate with mere mortals, that kind of thing. I don't like people like that, call it a personal foible."

Lance blinked, shocked, and glanced at the others. He wasn't surprised to see that they looked just as shocked as he felt. They had always had a reputation for being a group of goofy guys who happened to make it big doing what they love, not a bunch of over-pampered popstars, so the things Rebecca said really came out of left field. Interviewers usually complained just the opposite, that they were too normal and therefore not interesting enough.

JC was the first to recover, a look of dawning understanding on his face. "You said you were from California. Let me guess, you know Bobbee?"

Rebecca laughed. "Well yes, Mr Chasez, you could say that. We were _roomates_ most of the time you dated her. I guess I shouldn't be surprised you didn't recognize me, since you never stayed around long enough to do much more than say hi."

JC sighed. "Bobbee didn't introduce me to her friends, if you lived with her you should _know_ that. She was too busy trying to get me to introduce her to people in the business."

Lance spoke then. "If you've been listening to Bobbee, it's no wonder you think we're scum, she _hates_ us. We're not like that at all, ma'am."

Rebecca looked at Lance for a long moment, taking in the young face and blond hair, then finally asked, "Are you Justin?"

Lance shook his head and looked at the other guys. "Why don't we all just introduce ourselves?" He waited for the others to nod and then looked back at Rebecca. "My name is Lance Bass, and I'm twenty-two years old and from Mississippi."

Rebecca nodded and turned her head to look at Justin, waiting for him to speak.

Justin shrugged. "Justin. I'm twenty and from Memphis, but I live in Orlando most of the time. I sing and dance for fun, and I do interviews and photo shoots for a living." Justin grinned at her then as the guys laughed.

"Good one, Jup!" Joey told him, reaching across behind Chris to give Justin a high five before he looked back at the brunette. "I'm Joey and I'm from Brooklyn originally, but I've settled down in Orlando." He gave Rebecca a sweet smile, adding, "I'm twenty-four and however much Bobbee said she didn't like me, it was mutual."

"I'm Chris, but I already told you that," Chris said, giving Rebecca an unreadable look. He hated it when people judged them without even talking to them, and it looked like this woman had done just that. "Thirty and from Pittsburg, but I'm living in Orlando about a mile from Justin's place, across the street from Joey and three houses down from JC's."

Rebecca looked at them each in turn then, looking at JC last and longest before she made a decision. "Well, you guys are being nice enough even though I was pretty rude, so I'll _try_ to be a bit more fair. Anything in particular you want to talk about, or do you just want me to wing it and ask what I think the teenies want to know?"

The guys exchanged relieved looks while JC smiled at her and said, "That would suit us fine, we didn't know about the interview until Lonnie woke us up to tell us you were ready for us. We came expecting a photo shoot."

"Why am I not surprised? The Nashville office has _not_ impressed me much!" Rebecca thought for a moment then shrugged. "Why don't we just get it over with so you guys can go look pretty for Andre, okay?"

"Sure," Lance said with a smile. "Whenever you're ready, ma'am."

Rebecca made a face at him. "A guy your age calling me _ma'am_ makes me feel old." She reached for the tape recorder and clicked it on, then said, "Rebecca, 'Nsync interview, _J-14_ Nashville. Guys, I'm not into pop music at all, so I've never heard your stuff. How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard it?"

Justin glanced at the others and then said, "It's music that's easy to dance to, kind of a mix between pop and techno but with a rockin' back beat."

"Good answer, Justin, thanks," Rebecca said with a nod, then turned to Chris. "Chris, if you could recommend just _one_ CD for someone to buy, what would it be?"

Chris' eyebrows went up. "Wow, good question. Umm... I'd have to say a rock hits of the 80's record, or maybe one of the 90's complilations, something like that. I could never pick just one group to listen to, I like everything from Aerosmith to Zydeco."

Rebecca grinned. "What, you're not going to say _your_ album? Cute and politically correct too, I'm impressed."

The guys laughed and then Rebecca asked her next question. "JC, what were the last five CDs you listened to?"

JC looked surprised that she had picked him next, but he recovered quickly. "Oh, uhm... Well, after the concert last night we had a couple CDs we burned ourselves in the stereo but I don't think those really count since we _all_ picked the music on them, not just me. Umm... The Gorillaz self-titled album is great, I was listening to it yesterday on the bus, and _Beautiful Garbage_ is good too, I just listened to it the other day, and Jewel's new record... Oh! And Justin got some new CDs a couple days ago by TLC that I borrowed. I love their stuff, especially _Fan Mail_."

Rebecca nodded. "Okay, thanks. Hmm..." She looked at the papers in front of her, then looked up again. "Justin, all your fans know you and your girlfriend, Britney Spears, own a house together. Is there any truth to the rumor you two got married in secret after her last Vegas concert?"

Justin looked surprised, laughing. " _Married_?! Where do people get this stuff? No, we did _not_ get married. We have talked about it, but we haven't made any plans."

"So are you engaged or just dating, or what?"

"We're in love." Justin said, not really answering her question.

Rebecca gave him a wry little smile to show she knew he'd dodged the question but she let it go and turned to Lance and JC. "This packet says you guys are both dating someone as well. That right? Lance?"

Lance spoke first. "Yeah, I'm seeing someone. She's really great, sweet and funny and fits right into my life like she's always been there."

Rebecca nodded and then looked expectantly at JC, "And you, JC?"

JC shrugged. "I was dating someone but she didn't like my family so she dumped me. I've decided that I've had enough of girls getting upset at me because my best friends are welcome to hang out with me whenever they feel like it, so I'm not looking."

Rebecca raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying that even if you and your girlfriend were enjoying some private time together, you'd let the other guys come in and ruin the mood?"

"Letting them in shouldn't ruin the mood; if it does then that girl isn't for me," JC said, completely serious. "These guys are closer to me than brothers, we are together about eighty percent of the time year-round and spend most of our time within twenty feet of each other unless we're in separate hotel rooms or on a break. We _all_ know who snores, who drools in his sleep, what kind of toothpaste we each use, who has nightmares after horror flicks and who cries like a girl over sappy movies. So _yes_ , even if I'm with someone and it's three in the morning, if any of the guys show up at my door - at home or in a hotel or wherever I am - they are welcome. Anyone who wants to date me has to be prepared to accept my family as part of their life too, any and _all_ of the time."

"Well," Rebecca said dryly, "I'm not surprised that you're single anymore, even if you are gorgeous."

The other guys laughed at that while JC blushed and muttered, "Thank you. I think."

After looking at her papers a moment, Rebecca said, "I think we're done guys, you answered pretty much all I could think of to ask," and clicked off the tape. She grinned at them, then looked at JC. "I'm sorry I was so obnoxious to you. I can understand having family and putting them first over everything, but that's _not_ something Bobbee would ever get. Next time she's talking trash about you guys I'll be sure to point that out."

Lance and Chris glanced at each other, then Chris looked back at Rebecca. "Does she talk trash about us often?"

"Yeah, she's told anyone who would listen how obnoxious you boys are for the last few months, even while she was still dating JC. Hell, she even told me once that JC is gay and you guys are all doing him." Rebecca snorted. "I've lived in California all my life and I have damn good gaydar, and you guys don't ping it like that." She looked at them all with a little grin, adding, "That's not to say I think you're _straight_ , but my personal opinions stay off the record."

Chris frowned as Lance asked, "What makes you think we're not straight?"

Rebecca gave Lance a tolerant smile. "You sure you want to know?"

The guys exchanged looks then looked back at her. "We pretty much _have_ to know," Justin said.

"So you can fix it," Rebecca said with a smile. "It's not the way you look, or the way you act or anything, and it's probably not even anything most people would notice or think was odd. Chris and Joey are wearing matching rings, and they walked in together, and I get the feeling it's not a coincidence."

JC and Justin were obviously surprised as they looked at Chris and Joey, but Lance just grinned and watched them. He was sure that he knew which rings Rebecca meant as soon as she mentioned them.

Chris' eyes got big and he turned to look for the hand Joey had hid in his lap. Chris reached over and took Joey's hand, picking it up to look at the ring for a long minute as he said disbelievingly, "You still have it."

"Of course I do, I made a promise." When Chris looked up at that, Joey met his eyes and went on, completely serious. "You still have yours, too."

Chris nodded. "I _had_ to keep it, it was still true. I put it on this morning because I can admit that again, at least to the people who matter."

Joey nodded, still looking at Chris. "Which is pretty much why I wore mine."

"I knew it, though I gather that you two didn't for a while. I'm glad you got it back." Rebecca smiled at them, then suddenly looked smug and went on, "I'm so good, I amaze even myself." She sobered a bit and added, "And guys, don't worry, I won't out _anyone_. My best friend in school was in the closet for years for a lot less reason than you boys have, and I saw the hell he went through when he came out. He lost his job, his family and most of his friends, and he was a wreck for a long time. I firmly believe that your sexual orientation is between you and who you love, and is nobody else's business."

"Thanks," Chris said with a smile. "Lance, put Rebecca here in your address book, would you please?"

Lance grinned as he stood and said, "I'm way ahead of you." He walked to the door of the room and stuck his head out to talk to Lonnie for a second, then came back and sat down.

Rebecca looked quizzically at Lance for a minute before she finally gave in and asked, "Okay, so what was _that_ about? Did you tell him to do it or something?"

Lance grinned at her. "Not quite. I asked Lonnie to have one of the guys bring me my bag. I left it on the bus."

"Scoop _forgot_ something!" Chris crowed. "He's human after all!"

The other guys laughed and even Rebecca chuckled at the look on Lance's face. "I forget things all the time," Lance protested, but they just laughed at him.

The door to the room opened after another minute or two and Dre stepped in, heading straight for Lance with a black leather backpack and a smaller blue nylon bag. "Here you go, boss. They were right where you said they'd be."

"Oh!" JC exclaimed when he saw the blue bag, his face lighting up.

Lance grinned at Dre and took the bags from the burly bodyguard, passing the blue one to JC immediately. "Thanks Dre, we appreciate it. How did you get back so fast?"

"I was already on the bus when Lonnie called, and like I said they were under the bench by the door," Dre replied with a quick smile, then left again.

Lance put his backpack on the table and unzipped it, pulling out a Palm Pilot to start fiddling with it. "Rebecca, could I borrow one of your business cards please?"

"Certainly," she said with a smile and reached into her back pocket to pull out a card to hand to him, then looked back at JC. He looked completely thrilled over what looked to her like just a bag of CDs, and Rebecca was wondering where the cold, unfeeling snob Bobbee had ranted about was hiding. He wasn't sitting at the table with her, that was for _sure_.

JC already had the blue case open and had pulled out one of several thick folders of CDs, flipping through it with a big grin.

Justin was watching with just as big a grin, his eyes on JC's happy face. "Lance, where in the _world_ did you find Josh's bag? He's been pining after them for _weeks_ , I was sure he left them at a concert or in a hotel room somewhere. I looked all over the bus for them at least a dozen times."

Lance glanced up long enough to give Justin a quick smile and then looked back down to keep putting Rebecca's information into his Palm Pilot. "It was in the storage cabinet under the bench right at the front of the bus. I found it when I put my bag in there last night, and I figured I'd save it for today to give him something to do at the photo shoot."

JC leaned over and gave Lance a kiss on the cheek, grinning like a maniac. "Thanks!"

Lance laughed, still looking down at his Palm Pilot and blushing. "Josh, _chill_. It's not like I went and got you new copies of everything or something, I just happened to find them."

The other guys were all grinning, watching JC embarrass Lance without even realizing he was doing it.

"Still man," JC said, "I thought I'd never see these again! All of the CDs Chris has made for me are in here, and my Sting CDs, and the one Aerosmith signed for me, and my Sugar Ray albums, and dozens of others you can't _anywhere_ because people made them for me so I could hear things they were working on. I could never replace them all." JC beamed at Lance a moment and then put the folder of CDs back in the blue bag and zipped it shut. As soon as the zipper was secure, he pulled the bag into his lap and held on to it like he thought it might run away.

Rebecca was watching with a little grin, and when Lance was finally through filling out the address book entry and looked up to see her face he turned red again. Chris, Justin, and Joey laughed while Rebecca just grinned a little wider.

"So you keep these four goofballs organized, huh?" Rebecca asked, trying hard not to laugh.

Lance nodded, giving her a wry grin as he did his best to ignore the blush heating his face. "Yeah, pretty much. They need a keeper and I was elected years ago. I didn't get to vote."

"The fringe benefits look pretty nice though." Rebecca said with a completely straight face, making Lance blush even more.

JC just looked confused. "What fringe benefits?"

Rebecca started giggling, drawing huge grins from the other guys while JC just looked lost.

Lance finally patted JC's shoulder with a wry grin. "Don't worry about it, Josh. It was a joke."

JC made a face. "Which you're carefully not saying was over my head, right?"

The guys all grinned at him, but only Chris actually nodded and said, "Uh-huh."

Rebecca finally stopped giggling after a minute and spoke, grinning. "JC, you are just plain _priceless_. Bobbee's a bitch to talk about you like she does."

Justin grinned. "Lady, you just made my Christmas list. What color would you like your Beemer to be?"

Rebecca laughed and gave him a funny look. "Beemer?"

Justin's grin got a little wider. "Would a Mercedes be better?"

Rebecca stopped grinning and stared at him, wide-eyed.

Lance reached over and nudged her shoulder with one hand. "Hey, you okay over there?"

Rebecca finally spoke, her eyes still a little wide as she looked at Justin. "You're _not_ serious."

Justin gave her his best toothy grin. "What good is making as much money as we do if we can't buy things for people when we feel like it?" The other guys all nodded, smiling, even JC.

"But to buy a car just because I said Bobbee is a _bitch_?!" Rebecca asked, incredulous.

"No," Justin said with a smile, "because JC is priceless and you saw that. How does that go, Joe?"

Joey smiled. "Friends of my friends are friends by deed, enemies of my friends are enemies to heed, enemies of my enemies are friends in need."

Rebecca looked at Joey for a moment and then said, "I never would have expected _you_ to be the one to spout verses."

"You'd never expect him to do origami either, or short old guys, but he does both pretty well," Chris said with a big grin.

Joey reached past Justin to shove Chris just as Lance said, "You're incorrigible."

Chris smirked. "Yup, and proud of it!"

Rebecca laughed then and was about to say something when they heard a knock on the door. "Come in," she called.

A skinny young woman in jeans and a tank top leaned in and said, "Rebecca? I was told to tell you that you need to hurry up because Andre--" she shifted into a terrible French accent, "--'wants to be doing the lunch sometimes this year' and he can't until the photo shoot is done."

Rebecca laughed and stood. "Tell him they're on their way to wardrobe, okay, Casey?"

The girl nodded and left, and Rebecca looked at the guys, watching them all stand. "I enjoyed talking to you all, even though I really didn't think I would. Thank you."

Lance smiled at her as he slung his backpack over one shoulder. "Thank you for really listening and giving us a chance to prove Bobbee wrong."

"You guys definitely did that, you're _nothing_ like she said you would be. Now, if you'll follow me I'll show you to wardrobe... Andre has terrible taste but at least you get to leave the clothes here when you're done." Rebecca grinned, leading the way out and down the hall as the guys laughed.

 

 


	8. Chapter 8

 

 

~~~~8~~~~

 

Rebecca led them through the maze of hallways until eventually they reached the dressing room they were supposed to use. She stopped at the door and said, "Here you go, guys. These people will let you know what Andre wants you to wear and everything. Thanks again, and I hope to see you all soon." She gave them a smile and then headed off down the hallway back the way they had come.

The five men walked into the dressing room and looked around, taking in the large room full of racks of clothes in an odd array of colors and styles, as well as five people of various ages waiting on two couches. Chris was the first to spot a tall, skinny black-haired young man in jeans and a Metallica t-shirt sitting on one of the counters.

"Rafe!" Chris called, grinning. "Hey man, where have you _been_? We missed you on tour."

JC turned to look at Rafe with a grin. "Yeah, that girl that took your place keeps making Lance look like KD Lang."

Several of the people in the room laughed as Lance shoved JC. "Gee _thanks,_ Jayce. I always wanted to have one of my best friends tell me I look like a _girl_ ," he said, giving his friend an annoyed look before he looked over at Rafe and gave him a wry grin. "The sad part is that JC is right, some nights I could pass for KD's younger brother."

Rafe snorted as he gracefully hopped off the counter and then spoke, his deep south accent surprising contrast to his vaguely European looks. "Julie ain't the best - I am - but she's not _that_ bad guys. I mean, hey, not eveyone can make Lance look butch." He grinned wickedly as Lance made an annoyed noise and the others all laughed.

They were interrupted then by voice at the door, one with a strong French accent. " _Excuse me_ , children! You can be having the old homies week later! You have the pretty clothes to be changing into and then makeup to be doing so I can be taking some pretty-pretty pictures, yes?"

The guys groaned but they submitted themselves to the care of the wardrobe people, trying to keep the comments about the atrocious clothes to a minimum. The theme for this particular shoot was _'Nsync Goes Urban Cowboy_ , complete with 'dirty' jeans and copious amounts of tacky-looking leather.

It was _not_ a good look for them.

It wasn't a good look for _anyone_.

 

~*~

 

Two hours later the group finally was allowed to change back into their own clothes and leave, and they wasted no time finding their way back out. Lance stopped at the receptionist's desk to drop off a backstage pass for Rebecca and a note asking her to come by a show some time, then followed the others out into the bright sunlight. He paused again outside the main doors to look around for the guys, laughing when he saw them. Chris and Joey were holding Justin down in the grass not far from the bus while JC tickled him mercilessly, and Rafe was leaning against their bus laughing while Lonnie and Dre stood nearby.

After watching for a moment Lance walked over to join Rafe. "I should have known they'd be out here rolling around in the grass. They'll never change."

Rafe returned the grin. "Why would you want them to? They're lots of fun just like they are."

Lance laughed and watched as Justin squirmed, laughing and trying unsuccessfully to get loose. "Good point, they wouldn't be near as much fun if they were normal." The two young men watched the others playing until they all collapsed in the grass in exhaustion, then Lance turned to Rafe with a smile. "So, you're in town for the night, right? Are you going to be at the concert?" He sounded almost ridiculously hopeful, making Rafe chuckle.

"Yeah, I'll be there, and I'll even come and see what Julie's doing wrong. The KD Lang look is _not_ a good one for you." Rafe grinned and handed him JC's bag. "I was told to guard this with my life but you'll take care of it for him, I know. I've got to get going, I'm supposed to be across town for a photo shoot with Leann in an hour, and I still have to grab some lunch. See you tonight."

Lance took the bag with a grin. "Thanks. Tell Leann we said hello."

"Will do. Later," Rafe said, waving to the other guys as he headed for the parking lot.

Lance turned and watched Joey, Justin, Chris, and JC as they laid there in the sun, smiling at they way they were all sprawled together in a pile enjoying the sun and talking quietly. Lance knew it used to bother the others that he'd usually watch when they wrestled instead of joining in, but they had finally realized that he had just as much fun seeing them happy as he did playing with them. Chris, JC, and Justin got tackled daily, often several times a day, but Lance only got held down and tickled senseless every once in a while. He was glad it didn't happen often; he turned into a giggling girl when somebody tickled him, complete with squealing, and he tried very hard to avoid it.

The guys had been laying there talking softly for about five minutes when JC pointed out a cloud overhead to the others, and soon they were all making fun of him because the others didn't see what he did. They finally got up and walked over to Lance for him to settle it; JC calling him 'daddy Bass' when he and Chris were joking around that morning hadn't been too far off considering the way they deferred to Lance's judgement in most things. He was definitely the most mature member of the group, except possibly Joey, and the others seemed to recognize that.

"Lance, what does that cloud look like to you?" Justin asked, pointing out a rather large light grey cloud almost directly above them.

Lance looked up for just a moment, cocking his head to one side, then looked back down and grinned at them. "It's a whale. Now come on guys, get on the bus!" He turned and headed for the door of the bus, not waiting to see if they were going to follow him; he knew they would.

"HA!" JC exclaimed, beaming at the others as he followed Lance. "See guys, I'm _not_ nuts!"

The other guys gave Lance's back dirty looks as they followed them onto the bus, wondering if he'd overheard JC saying the cloud was a whale or if he was just crazy too.

"Dude," Joey said finally as he walked by Lance in the aisle, "that was _not_ a whale."

Lance grinned over his shoulder at Joey as he bent to put his bag away in the storage compartment he'd appropriated for it. "So what did _you_ think it was?"

Joey snorted. "It was a cloud, Scoop. A _grey_ one."

Lance chuckled.

Chris grabbed Joey's arm then and dragged him towards the back towards the lounge with Justin and JC following them. Chris was planning to kick Justin's butt at Tony Hawk 2, their newest game, and Joey and JC were going to cheer them on. Justin had just turned the game on when JC remembered something and headed back up towards the front of the bus to find Lance, who was leaning against the counter as he drank a Dr. Pepper he'd just opened.

"Scoop?" JC half-asked, looking worried. "Did Rafe give you my bag before he left?"

Lance grinned and reached behind him to take the bag off the counter and hand it to JC. "Of course, I wouldn't have let him run off with it even if he tried, which he didn't."

JC beamed. "You're the _best_ , I don't know what we'd do without you to take care of us."

Lance smiled at him. "I love you too, Josh. Now come on, we've got to get those clowns to agree on someplace to go for lunch, I'm starving!" He stuck the Dr. Pepper in the door of the little refridgerator and started towards the back of the bus with JC right behind him.

"I don't care where we eat. I'm going to go play with my music." JC paused at his bunk long enough to grab his discman off of his pillow, then followed Lance back to the back of the bus.

Lance snorted and looked over his shoulder at JC. "Lot of help you are!"

JC just grinned and shrugged. Food was food, especially if it was drive-through food. After living on the stuff for so long, he could find something he would eat on just about any menu.

When Lance walked into the back, Justin was sitting on one of the beanbag chairs with Chris next to him in the floor, both of them absorbed in their game already while Joey watched from the couch. Lance went to go sit on the couch with Joey, laughing at the look on Chris' face as Justin's character in the game did a backflip off of the hood of a police car. JC walked past them with a smile to go curl up on the other beanbag chair in the corner and listen to his CDs while he watched them play.

When Chris and Justin finished the first round - Justin won - Lance had them pause it. "Where are we gonna eat? I'm in the mood for a really good bacon cheeseburger, so how does Whataburger sound?"

Justin shrugged and looked at him with a grin. "I don't care, food's food."

Joey nodded and when Lance looked over at JC to see if he had anything to say all he got was a blinding smile as JC sang softly along with a CD he'd just put in his discman. Lance grinned back at JC and then looked at Chris, who just shrugged.

"Whataburger's okay. Can we get pizza tonight though?" Chris asked hopefully. They hadn't had pizza in almost a week and it was his favorite besides Taco Bell.

Lance stood, nodding. "I don't mind if the others don't, pizza sounds good. I'll go tell the driver we decided on Whataburger."

Chris and Justin grinned and turned back to their game as Lance went up to the front of the bus, the sound of Justin's laughter as Chris yelled making Lance grin. Lance spoke to the driver and was back in the doorway to the lounge in just a few minutes, where he paused to watch JC with a grin. JC had put the CD he was listening to in the stereo and was dancing around the room to Smashmouth's _Can't Get Enough Of You Baby_ while Justin watched him, grinning, and Chris tried to play the game.

The others usually danced better with choreography, but JC could move with any music and make it look like he'd practiced it for weeks. JC was dancing with his usual enthusiasm as he sang along, and when he saw Justin watching he went over and grabbed his hand. "Dance with me, baby!" he said with a huge grin, still dancing, and Justin laughed and stood to dance with him.

Lance went to sit down next to Joey, and they both laughed as Justin danced around the room with JC, distracting Chris and making him make stupid mistakes on the game.

Justin was trying to do what looked like the funky chicken or maybe a messed up version of the swim - the swimming chicken? - while JC watched him with a grin, singing and doing random moves from a dozen different dances. The song switched after a couple of minutes more to _Rockin' the Suburbs_ by Ben Folds, and JC and Justin both started jumping in place to the beat and singing along, loudly.

Chris gave up on the game and got up on the couch with Joey and Lance, watching the two bouncing popstars with a grin. "Y'know," he said after a minute, "if all those screaming teenaged girls could just see them like this, we could take a nice _long_ vacation."

Joey laughed and Lance said, grinning, "The teenies would never believe JC likes alternative rock and punk music as much as they like us. _Everybody_ knows JC listens to people like Sting, Jewel, and Tori Amos, not real music."

"Hey man!" JC said, still bouncing to the music. "Sting _is_ real music, he's a genius!"

"Then why aren't you listening to him right now?" Chris asked with a grin.

JC looked surprised and stopped bouncing, then shrugged and grinned. "'Cause right now I wanna _dance_." He grinned as the next song started and he immediately began moving again, singing along.

Joey listened a few seconds and then asked, "Hey, who is that? I've never heard that version of _Abracadabra_."

Chris grinned and replied, "I'd be surprised if you had. It's an album cut for one of their early CDs. Mark gave a copy to me just before I did this CD for JC, and I figured he'd love it so I put it on there. I think I was right."

JC and Justin were both dancing randomly, watching each other and laughing occasionally while they tried to sing along.

Joey listened to the song a bit more and then it dawned on him which Mark, Chris meant. "Mark McGrath? The Sugar Ray Mark?"

Lance laughed when Chris snorted and said, "Yes, Joe, the Sugar Ray Mark. How many Marks do we know who sing like that? They've done a _lot_ of cover songs over the years, mostly in concert, and Mark and the guys have put some of them on CD. He mentioned it to me and when I was interested he gave me a copy."

The song changed again, this time to _Staying Power_ by Queen, and they listened as JC sang along for a minute before Lance turned to look at the other two. "Am I the only one who's noticed alot of JC's favorite songs are about sex and don't mention whether they are about a girl or a guy?"

Joey looked at Lance with a wicked grin. "Dude, you just noticed? He's always been that way!"

Chris laughed and nodded. "Yeah, and we'd better not let him listen to many of them in public... Look at those two." He gestured towards the two dancing young men and Lance looked back over at them.

" _Rock me baby, rock me, come on you can shock me_ ," JC sang, his eyes on Justin's face as they both moved to the music. " _Let's catch on to the groove, make it move, make it move... Baby, you can shake that thing, you and me got staying power, yeah._ "

Lance shook his head and grinned. He knew that everything important in life was set to music in JC's mind, and now that Lance thought about it a lot of JC's favorite songs mentioned 'baby' instead of the more usual 'girl' or 'woman'. It seemed so obvious now that Lance wondered how none of them had never noticed, then he remembered the CDs Chris had made for JC and wondered if Chris _had_ known and just never said anything.

The next song on the CD was _Alive_ by POD and Justin flopped down on the beanbags in the corner to watch with a grin as JC danced, this time headbanging with the heavy rock beat. " _Sunshine upon my face, a new song for me to sing_ ," JC sang, " _wanna tell the world how I feel inside, even though it might cost me everything. 'Cause now that I know, it's beyond my control, I can never turn my back away. Now that I’ve seen you, I can never look away... I, I feel so alive, for the very first time, I can’t deny you..._ "

Lance looked at Chris for a long moment then, thinking this was yet another song Chris had put on the CD about being in love that didn't mention a girl. Chris glanced over and noticed him looking near the end of the song, and he winked at Lance. Lance grinned back; Chris knew more than he was saying, he was sure of it. Everybody thought he was just a crazy-hyper guy who was way too impulsive, but Lance knew there was a shrewd mind behind those twinkling eyes, one that never stopped working even though Chris usually hid it well behind his off-the-wall comments.

JC turned the stereo down a bit and flopped down with Justin on the beanbag chairs at the end of the song, grinning and looking at Lance as a live version of _We Didn't Start The Fire_ by Billy Joel started playing. "So Scoop, when do we get to the burger joint?"

Lance returned the grin. "Andy says there's one near the venue, so we're headed to it. Oughta be there in fifteen minutes or so. Once we've had lunch we'll have an hour or two to kill before soundcheck, so I figured we would hang out at the venue this afternoon. If we head to the hotel first we'll just barely have time to get settled in before we have to go again."

JC nodded, not really caring one way or the other, but Chris had a question. "Hey, speaking of the hotel, what are the arrangements for tonight? Do we have rooms or a suite or what?"

"We've got a 'family suite' reserved for us and rooms for our security at the Ramada about a mile from the stadium. Going by what the receptionist told me when I made the reservations, we'll have four rooms including the living area, plus a bathroom with a hot tub and a second bath with just a shower." Lance grinned at the looks on their faces and went on, "I reserved the rooms planning to either sleep on the couch or share Joey's room, thinking Chris and Justin wouldn't mind sharing the room with double beds, but I can call and try to get another room if you'd like..."

"Don't!" Justin said quickly with a big grin. "Josh and I can share, I don't mind, honest."

JC smiled but didn't say anything, knowing that was a vast understatement.

Chris piped up then and said, "Yeah, that suite sounds great. I _love_ hot tubs, and if I get lucky we won't even need the third bedroom."

Joey grinned and then Lance gave Chris a pitiful attempt at a leer that made Joey and Chris both start laughing.

"Lance, dude, don't _do_ that," Justin said, grinning. "You look even more like that Lang woman when you make that face!"

Lance stuck his tongue out at Justin, and was completely unprepared when Chris leaned over to kiss him, tongue and all. When Chris pulled away after a minute Lance raised an eyebrow at him. "And _what_ was that, may I ask?"

Chris grinned impishly. "That was a kiss. Most people consider it a fun way to pass the time, often followed by losing your clothes and getting freaky, or in Justin and JC's case just getting freaky."

Joey and Justin laughed while JC blushed, making Chris grin even wider.

When Justin noticed JC was blushing he leaned over and kissed him, then grinned at him and said, "You're adorable when you blush, I just want to kiss you." Justin kissed him again and shifted closer to him, then went on, "Of course, I want to kiss you when you're _not_ blushing, too." Justin grinned and kissed JC a third time, ignoring Chris' snort as he steadily deepened the kiss. Over the last twelve hours or so Justin had made it pretty obvious that he _always_ wanted to kiss JC, so he didn't really need to tell them that.

"I'm glad these two finally got their act together, aren't you?" Lance said, turning look at Chris after watching JC and Justin for a moment.

Chris completely ignored him and kept watching Justin put the moves on JC with a little grin.

Lance snorted and turned then to look at Joey, who was on his other side, to see if he'd been listening to him either, then snorted again. " _I_ may take that third room tonight, you two would rather watch _them_ than listen to _me_!" Lance said then a little louder, folding his arms across his chest and giving Joey and Chris a dirty look.

Joey and Chris both looked at Lance in surprise, then they exchanged a look across him and both moved towards him, grinning wickedly.

Lance didn't react when Joey kissed him just below his ear, but his eyes widened a bit when Chris moved to sit across his knees, beginning to unbutton his shirt. "Umm. What are you doing?" Lance asked, trying to keep his voice level as Joey nibbled his way down Lance's neck. Lance wasn't going to be able to ignore that for long, and he knew that Joey knew it just as well as he did.

Chris kept working on the shirt until he'd freed the last button, then gave Lance an innocent grin and said, "We're paying attention to you. That's what you wanted, right?" He slid his hands along Lance's t-shirt covered sides under the now open shirt as he leaned forward to kiss him, stifling whatever reply Lance might have made.

Lance felt hands at his belt a few minutes later without it really registering, but when those same hands unbuttoned his jeans and slipped inside he pushed Chris back a little, leaning away from Joey at the same time. "No, we _can't_ , not here," he said, looking at them with wide eyes.

Joey grinned at him and reached for his pants again. "Sure we can, just lean back and enjoy, we'll take care of you."

Lance swatted his hand away. "Joe," he said warningly, "I said no."

Joey gave him puppy-dog eyes then and pouted, but he could tell Lance was serious and didn't really think it would work. He was right.

"We said we wouldn't on the bus," Lance said then, looking at Chris because he knew Joey wouldn't push it.

Justin spoke then from where he was sitting with JC in his lap while JC nibbled his way down Justin's neck. "Go ahead guys, we don't mind. If you three have sex on the bus that means me and Josh can."

JC hadn't been paying the slightest bit of attention to the three on the couch, but he jerked his head up when he heard Justin say that. " _Justin_!"

Justin looked at him and ran his hands over JC's butt, trying to look innocent. "Yes, Josh?"

"We agreed not to do that on the bus, baby!" JC said earnestly, trying to ignore what Justin's hands were doing.

Justin pouted and pulled JC a little closer to him. "But I want to," he said, whining.

JC shook his head vehemently, bracing his hands on Justin's shoulders and resisting the pull as he said, "No, we agreed! You can do whatever you want at the hotel tonight, but not on the bus."

"Promise?" Justin asked, giving JC his best pout and 'I'm not sure I believe you' look.

JC nodded. "I promise."

Justin grinned suddenly and quit trying to pull JC closer. "Okay! I'll be good, but tonight we do whatever I want."

JC suddenly looked a little uncertain, thinking he'd just talked himself into trouble, but the three on the couch distracted them before he could say anything.

Joey had shoved Chris off Lance's knees and into the floor while Justin and JC were talking, and Joey was giving Chris a dirty look. "You just _had_ to go and suggest that rule last night," Joey said as he flopped back against the back of the couch, making no attempt to hide it as he adjusted himself in his too-tight jeans. "You could have just turned on the stereo so we couldn't hear them or we could have made some noise of our own to drown them out, but nooo... You had to say 'no sex on the bus', knowing Lance and JC would go along with it in a heartbeat. Do you have any _clue_ how many hours we're gonna spend on the bus regretting those five _stupid_ words?"

Lance snickered, but he sobered quickly when Joey gave him a dirty look. Joey was right, there would be an awful lot of long bus rides in the future, especially since after their week off they had to head west to do a gig in Texas and then one in California three days after that. Crossing Texas was always terribly boring, miles upon miles of nothing to do but play Playstation or sleep because of bad TV reception, and the more Lance thought about it, the more he thought he'd suggest changing the new rule after they got started west. JC would go for it if Lance persuaded him just a bit, he was sure of it, and he knew the other three would love the idea.

Justin looked over JC's shoulder at the couch then and said, "You're right Joe, it _is_ his fault isn't it? We oughta kick his ass."

Chris looked up from his position sprawled on the floor, looking sheepishly from Joey to Justin and back again. "It seemed like a good ideaat the time guys, honest!"

He might have said more then but the bus slowed almost to a stop and made a right hand turn, bouncing over a curb as it went into a parking lot. Lance got up to go look out the window, fastening his pants and then his belt as he went. "Doesn't matter now, we're at Whataburger," Lance said with a grin. "Get up and get some shoes on so we can go eat."

Lance started to re-button his shirt then while Chris crawled across to where his tennis shoes were laying by the television, sitting there to put them on. JC stood to go get his loafers from where he'd kicked them off in the corner. Justin, Joey and Lance still had their shoes on, and as soon as JC had his on they all went to the front of the bus to wait for Chris.

Lance adjusted his jeans again as they waited, making a mental note to ask about having a larger water resevoir put in the bus; he could see a lot of cold showers in his near future.

 


	9. Chapter 9

 

 

~~~~9~~~~

 

The Whataburger was just across the road from the venue, and quite a few fans who had been waiting at the staduim for their bus to arrive saw them stop for lunch. Almost before the bus had stopped rolling there was a steady stream of girl crossing the street, and within minutes they stopped traffic almost completely as they crowded across the road and into into the restaurant and its parking lot.

The guys had intended to eat there when the buses stopped but they were forced to return to the bus after ordering because of the crowd, and Lonnie was nervous enough that he left Dre on the bus with them as an extra precaution. As soon as Scott brought them their order Andy pulled out, followed closely by the bodyguards' bus as they crossed to the stadium to try and escape the crowd of fans. It didn't work, or more precisely it didn't do any good because there were plenty more fans where the others had come from. A rather large crowd moved towards them past the barricades as they pulled up at the back entrance to the stadium, waving signs and screaming names, and the guys wound up eating lunch on the bus while security and the local police moved the crowd so they could get inside.

Forty-five minutes after they arrived at the stadium, the fans were finally back behind the barricades where they belonged. The five guys grabbed their stuff then and were escorted quickly off the bus to make their way through the maze of passages underneath the stadium to their dressing room. Lonnie told them to hang out there or in the lounge next to it and then, with Scott and two others left to guard them, Lonnie and the rest of the security team went to check out the facilities and find the catering room.

They had about an hour and a half to kill before soundcheck, and the others went into the lounge while Lance set up his laptop on the counter in the dressing room. He was determined to make the few calls he had to and get his email done before soundcheck. The guys had spent more time talking to each other in the last twenty-four hours than they had in the week before that, and the benefits had been obvious.

Justin and Chris hadn't seriously fought over anything all day and Lance knew that Joey had enjoyed himself more than he had in a long time, but the biggest change had been in JC. JC had been more there all day long than Lance had seen him in months, maybe longer. The quiet guy who had been spending all his time sleeping or looking out the window was gone, and the old JC - the one who'd earned the nickname Spazz with his unfailing energy and odd sense of humor - seemed to be back.

Lance wanted to be sure the old JC stuck around, and that meant spending more time with the guys and a lot less with his nose buried in paperwork or staring at the screen of his laptop. With that goal in mind he set aside most of his paperwork to give to his personal assistant, and then he called to have Meredith start doing more of the work with A Happy Place, his film production company. Free-Lance, his management company, wasn't as much of a concern because he'd already told them they'd have to fend for themselves until the end of the tour.

After checking over everything, Lance found he could delegate about eighty percent of the work he'd been doing, giving him a lot more time to spend on other things, namely the four most important people in his life.

 

~*~

 

There was a rather well-appointed entertainment center in the lounge, and as soon as they walked in JC began playing with the stereo while the others started setting up their Playstation. The room wasn't a large one but it contained two big overstuffed chairs and a matching couch, and there was a table and four folding chairs in one corner where Justin put his bag and JC's.

Nobody seemed to care what they listened to at the moment so JC put in another of the CDs Chris had made for him, this one simply labeled Yoga. JC curled up then in the armchair closest to the stereo and wrapped up in the blue quilt that had traveled all over the world in Justin's bag. By the time Chris and Joey were to the first save point in their game, JC was already sound asleep.

Justin laid down on the couch to watch Joey and Chris start a new game of Final Fantasy VII - a game they had yet to beat after a month of playing it off and on - and before long the soft music and familiar graphics put him to sleep too.

 

~*~

 

By the time Lance was through with his email and the phone calls he'd had to make, they only had fifteen minutes until the soundcheck. He shut the computer down and began putting everything away, then put his bag on the small couch where it wouldn't get kicked and went out in the hall to check with Lonnie to make sure everything was on schedule. It was, so he headed into the lounge to tell the other guys to get ready to go test the sound system and meet some fans.

Lance walked into the room and leaned on the back of the couch to watch Chris and Joey play the game for a few minutes, smiling when he realized they were whispering their comments on the game because they didn't want to wake Justin or JC. He finally spoke up in a normal tone of voice just after watching Joey and Chris fight a battle. "Soundcheck is in about ten minutes. We have to go get rigged up pretty quick."

Chris and Joey glanced at each other and then Joey turned off his character to let Chris go save the game while he went to use the bathroom. As soon as Joey stood up Lance reached down over the back of the couch to gently shake Justin's shoulder, and after a few seconds the younger man stretched and opened his eyes.

"Time to go?" Justin asked, sounding like he was still more than half asleep.

"We have to get rigged for the soundcheck, Jup," Lance told him quietly. "Do you want to wake JC or do you want me to do it?"

Justin blinked a few times and wiped a hand across his face, still trying to wake up. Lance watched him with a tolerant smile and was about to repeat the question when Justin said, "I'll wake him. How big of a hurry are we in?" He sat up and then rubbed his eyes as he waited for an answer.

"Not a huge hurry, the concert isn't for three hours yet, but Lonnie says they're ready for us as soon as we get rigged up." Lance moved around to sit on the arm of the couch and look at Justin. "In other words, you don't have to have him on his feet in the next five seconds, but they expect us soon."

Justin, finally awake, smiled. "I can handle soon." He looked over at the chair JC had been in when he laid down and grinned at what he saw. JC was curled up on his side in the chair like a big dog, taking up far less room than someone would expect a nearly six foot tall man to need. One corner of Justin's quilt was wadded up under his cheek and the rest of the blanket was draped over his body and legs haphazardly, trailing into the floor.

Justin stood up and stretched, the sound of joints popping clearly audible in the small room.

Chris turned off the game and moved over to sit on the couch with a soft snort. "It's not fair," he said. "When my body makes those noises I'm in pain for a week."

Lance gave him a wry grin and nodded. "Same here."

Justin gave them a smug look and then moved over to kneel by the chair JC was in, pausing just to look at him. Justin had often spent an afternoon on the bus just listening to music and watching JC sleep, admiring the beautiful man he'd known for what seemed like half his life and wanting to go over and touch him but knowing that he couldn't. The others had noticed it years ago, and that JC did the same thing given the opportunity, but they never made a big deal over it. Eventually they had accepted that Justin liked to watch JC sleep, and JC liked to watch Justin, even though neither ever offered to explain or even admitted they did it.

 _I'm allowed to touch Josh now, though_ , Justin thought with a smile, and after watching him a moment longer he lifted his hand to brush the hair back out of JC's face.

Justin smiled a little wider when JC leaned into the caress and mumbled, "Jus?" even before opening his sleepy blue eyes.

Justin stroked JC's cheek with the back of his fingers, his smile and eyes saying how he felt about the older man better than words ever could. "I hate to wake you, sweetheart," he said softly, "but we're due at soundcheck soon."

JC returned the smile and then turned his head to kiss Justin's wrist. "It's okay,baby. I'm awake," he murmured as he sat up a little, still smiling.

Justin leaned forward and kissed JC, then stood. "I'll be right back," he said then, smiling quickly at JC before he turned to go find the bathroom, passing Joey in the doorway.

Joey walked over to the couch to join Chris, who was watching as JC stretched, eyes closed and arching his back like a cat. Joey and Lance both watched too, smiling as JC rolled his neck and stretched again, this time raising his hands over the back of the chair and stretching his legs straight out in front of it until they could hear joints pop.

JC finally relaxed into a sprawl on the chair, still half covered by the blue blanket, and opened his eyes to see three of his best friends watching him. "Hi," he said after a minute with a goofy little smile. "What'd I miss?"

Chris snorted and then said, "Joey and I didn't get anywhere new on the game, Justin fell asleep not long after you did, and Lance was off re-enacting Digital Getdown on that laptop of his."

Lance swatted Chris on the back of the head. "I did not! I had work to do." He looked back over at JC and asked, "Did you sleep well?"

JC nodded, grinning. "Oh yeah. A comfy chair, my blanket and some music are all the elements of a good nap."

"Whose blanket, Josh?" Justin said as he walked back in and came up behind JC's chair, grinning.

JC leaned his head back to look at Justin, pulling the blanket up off his lap and snuggling it under his chin with a teasing grin. "My blanket. It came with my Justin, they're sort of a package deal."

The others laughedat that because JC's take on the situation was pretty accurate. Justin was as attached to the old quilt as the kid on Peanuts was to his blanket, and wherever it went he was sure to follow. If it were elligible, it would probably have more frequent flyer miles than most stewardesses. Justin had carried it all over the world, ever since the first European trip, and was seldom without it even when they were on a break.

Justin walked over and put a knee in the chair on either side of JC's legs, sitting on his knees. "If I'm yours that means you're mine, right?" he asked, smiling as he looked into JC's smiling blue eyes.

JC let the blanket fall away from his chin as he looked up at Justin with a smile, moving his hands to Justin's waist as he considered the question seriously, whether Justin had meant it that way or not. He finally spoke after a moment, no longer smiling. "I dunno why you should want me since you already have everything, but I'm yours if you do, baby. I always have been."

Justin lifted one hand to lightly touch JC's cheek, smiling as he answered softly, "But I don't want everything, Josh. I just want you."

JC gave Justin a sweet, happy smile that lit up his eyes. "And you're all I've really wanted for a long, long time."

Justin didn't say anything in reply to that, just leaned forward to kiss JC. He could mess up and ruin the moment if he tried to say how he felt, but he knew that JC would understand the sentiment perfectly if he just put how he felt into a kiss. JC had proven the night before that he was quick to pick up on Justin's emotions when they were kissing.

Lance watched them for a moment and then looked at Joey and Chris, surprised to find they were looking at each other instead of watching the two on the chair. Joey's eyes were soft and full of love as he smiled at Chris, and even though Lance couldn't see Chris' face he had no doubt the look was returned. Lance reached over and nudged Chris' shoulder with a grin as he said, "Kiss him already." He knew they were supposed to be getting ready for the soundcheck, but he thought they could afford a few more minutes.

Chris glanced over his shoulder to smile at Lance and then moved the short distance down the couch between him and Joey, stopping about a foot away from him. "I'm still sorry for what I did to you, to us. I can never say it enough," Chris said softly, rarely serious.

Joey leaned towards Chris with a smile as he replied, "Shut up, Critter. You talk too much." He gave Chris a slow, deep kiss and then pulled back and reached for his left hand. He looked into Chris' eyes as he ran a fingertip over the nearly plain silver ring Chris wore and said, "The fact you kept this and that you're wearing it now says all you need to say. I don't want you to apologize for the past anymore, not to me or anyone else. We hurt each other, broke each other's hearts, but it was a long time ago. I love you, I always have, and I know you love me. I've long since forgiven you, but you need to forgive yourself, too."

Justin moved silently to sit next to JC in his chair, holding his hand as they both watched, hoping Chris would really listen to Joey. They had both noticed that Chris had been a little subdued for much of the day, especially while they all napped before the photo shoot. Chris hardly ever slept during the day, and when he did he usually tossed and turned constantly enough to wake the others with his shufflings.

Chris looked down at his and Joey's hands, fiddling with Joey's ring. "When Rebecca saw this on your hand this morning, I was shocked. Since that day I've never once seen you with it, and I was sure you'd gotten rid of it, or lost it, or something." He paused, just sitting there silently for a moment before he looked up at Joey. "I've kept mine with my earrings, and every time I changed them I would look at it and think about how stupid I was. You were the best thing that ever happened to me, and I gave you up - drove you away - because I wanted to be famous." He swallowed hard and then added, "I don't deserve you, much less you and Lance. You two could be happy without me, you know it as well as I do." Chris' eyes were sad but very serious; he had meant every word even though it hurt him to say it.

Joey lifted his right hand to cup Chris' cheek. "Stop it, please?" he said softly. "Quit doing this to yourself, it hurts to see you like this. The past is over and done with and it doesn't do any good for you to brood over what can't be changed. We have to start over again and do it right this time." Joey smiled suddenly then and looked past Chris at Lance for a second, then back at Chris. "Lance will make sure we don't fuck it up again, he loves us both too much to let us do anything so stupid."

Chris smiled at that, thinking Joey was right, then the smile faded and he turned to sit so he could look at Lance too. "How do you feel about this? You and Joey have been together for a while now, and I know you love him. Sex is one thing, and you'll never know how flattered I am you actually seem to want me, but do you want more? From me?" He was half afraid of what the answer would be. If they were going to do this, Chris wanted forever, but he was afraid to say it.

Lance moved to sit on the couch next to Chris and take one of his hands, reaching across him to take one of Joey's too. "Chris, sweetheart, I love you just as much as I do Joey, or Josh, or Justin. I want you all to be as happy as you can possibly be, and I'll do whatever I have to do to make that happen. With JC and Justin," he paused and looked over at the two in question, drawing Chris' eyes to them too to see them cuddled together in the chair, smiling encouragingly at them.

Lance went on as he looked back at Chris, "Well, loving them is simple; all I need to do is make sure they never doubt each other. I know they love each other more than anyone or anything else, and I'm sure that given half a chance they will be together forever. Loving Joey is different from loving them..."

Lance looked at Joey for a moment then, smiling, and then looked back at Chris as he went on. "I've loved him almost since the day we met, and I've known I was in love with him for nearly two years now. I would probably still be hiding it if I hadn't gotten drunk on my birthday and had to ask him to take me home because I could barely walk." He grinned suddenly at the memory. "I was so smashed that I don't even remember telling him I loved him that first time, I just know that when I woke up I was in his arms..."

Lance's grin softened into a fond smile. "I laid there enjoying it for a long time, thinking that it was a pretty nice birthday present even though I had an awful hangover and I was sure it wouldn't happen again, but he woke up eventually and almost immediately began mumbling to himself. I listened to him for a minute or two before I made out something about not taking advantage of me even if I was in his arms of my own free will, and I couldn't resist that straight line." He grinned wickedly. "I said to take advantage of me, please, and he let go of me and jumped away so fast he fell off the bed." Lance chuckled, drawing another grin from Joey.

Chris spoke then, frowning. "See, that's just what I mean! You're in love with him, Lance, and you've been together almost a year. It's not fair for me to stick my nose into that. I fucked up my chance through my own stubborn stupidity... Now you two are happy together and I don't want to fuck that up, too."

Lance smiled tolerantly. "You didn't let me finish," he said softly, squeezing Chris' hand. "I love you too, Chris, just as much as I love Joey but for different reasons. You're the one who first taught me how to stand up for myself, and not to ever give up, and how to really relax and live life. I had a crush on you from the day we met, and it didn't take it long to turn into more. I love you, but I'm in love with you, too. I have been for a long time, you can ask Joe. He knows how much I love you, and that I was in love with you years before I realized I was in love with him, too. This isn't something we're rushing into. Joe and I know how we feel, we have for a long time."

Chris looked at Joey, surprised. "Joe?"

Joey smiled, nodding. "He came to me just after we broke with Lou and said he had to tell someone. He was afraid to tell you, and he knew I wouldn't tell anyone or get upset with him over it. He didn't know then exactly why I was so sympathetic, but we spent a lot of time talking about you after that." Joey grinned at Lance and then looked back at Chris. "We both love you. Lance and I could make a life together without you, sure, but we don't want that. We've talked about it, Chris, discussed what we'd do if we ever scraped together the guts to tell you how we feel, and we both want to be with you. I'm pretty sure you want the same thing, so you need to stop worrying and just go with what your heart says. Thinking has always gotten you into trouble, Critter, you oughta know that by now." He grinned as he said that, knowing it was a vast understatement.

Chris looked from Joey to Lance and back, then down at their linked hands for few minutes before he finally looked back up and gave Joey a wry smile. "You're right, Joe," he said quietly. "I do think too damn much. You do both know I love you, right?" He looked from Joey to Lance, concerned. "Never doubt for a minute that I'd do anything for you two, or that I want to be with you if that's what you both want... I just don't want to rock the boat, y'know?"

"Then stop fighting it," Lance said with a smile. "Like you told JC and Justin, do what you feel. You won't shock us, or upset us, I promise. I might even shock you if you give me half a chance," he said with a sudden grin, "just not on the bus."

Chris looked at Lance for a long moment and then gently tugged on Lance's hand to urge him closer, reaching at the same time with his other hand to take Joey's free hand. "This is forever, right?" Joey nodded and Chris turned to look at Lance, who was smiling and nodding too. "We need another ring then," he said, looking from Lance to Joey again as a grin finally spread over his face.

Joey grinned. "Antonia can have it here in a few days, I'm sure. She always keeps a record of her custom jewelry in case the client wants another like it."

JC spoke suddenly, making the three on the couch look over at the chair where he was now sitting more than half on Justin's lap with Justin's arms around his waist. "Guys, I think we need three more rings. Then we can say that all five of us are wearing them to show we're committed to staying together, which is true so we won't even have to lie about them. Our fans may never know the full reason we're wearing them, but we will."

Lance grinned, surprised. "That's a good idea, Josh. Backstreet did pretty much the same thing with tattoos when they'd been together five years, and other bands have done similar things so it won't even be that unusual." He paused then, looking down at where his and Joey's hands were tangled with Chris', then went on, "I think we should wear them on our right hands though, it won't go over well with Johnny and Jive otherwise."

Joey shrugged. "I don't care if I wear mine on my right or my left, but I'm not taking it off and putting it away again."

"Same here," Chris said, nodding.

Just then there was a knock on the door to the dressing room, almost immediately followed by a voice in the next room calling softly, "Guys?"

"Come on in, Dre," Lance answered, recognizing the voice.

Dre appeared in the doorway. "Sorry to bother you, but Johnny just got here really pissed about something, and you're late for soundcheck too with about two hundred girls waiting for y'all. He said if you weren't out there in two minutes he was coming after you, so I came to warn you."

Lance nodded. "Thanks, Dre, we appreciate it."

Chris let go of Joey and Lance's hands and stood, giving Dre a quick grin. "Yeah man, thanks. Some things Johnny's better off not knowing."

Dre grinned back at Chris. "And it's our job to see he doesn't. I'm going back out there before somebody misses me. Lonnie's outside." With a quick wave Dre left.

Joey and Chris stood up as JC pulled Justin to his feet, then Lance looked them all over with a practiced eye. He reminded Joey and Chris to switch their rings to the other hand, then finally nodded. "Okay, let's go. No telling why Johnny showed up, so we'd better be prepared for anything." He hadn't even taken a step towards the door when they all heard the dressing room door close hard.

"Johnny is here because he saw you idiots on TV this morning and wants to know what the hell you were thinking," Johnny's voice came from the next room, quickly followed by him. He walked into the lounge and shut the door, looking completely pissed, and carried a video tape over to put it in the VCR. "Sit down, boys."

 

 


	10. Chapter 10

 

 

~~~~10~~~~

 

The guys exchanged glances and went to sit back down, JC in the opposite chair from where he'd sat before and the other four on the couch. Lance was going over the last few days in his head, wondering what they had done and unable to think of anything Johnny might have seen except the interview that morning. Johnny must have left his house in Asheville within minutes of the show to be there already unless he chartered a flight, and either way that wasn't good news.

Johnny put the tape in and hit play, picking up the remote and stepping to one side so they could see the television. The interview they did that morning started after a minute or so with their introductions, and they had just gotten to where Chris was waving to the 'audience' when Johnny paused it. "What's with the ring, Chris? You don't wear rings, you've said it in interviews a hundred times, and you definitely don't wear rings that match one Joey is wearing at the same time, on that finger. Why did you decide to today?" Johnny looked at him with narrowed eyes, waiting for an answer.

"It's my ring," Chris replied, frowning. "I wanted to wear it. Get used to it, it's not coming off any time soon."

"And we're all going to be wearing one just like it," Justin added, giving Johnny an unreadable look as the others nodded.

Johnny looked at them one at a time, finally settling on Lance. "You're usually the voice of reason, would you explain this idiocy to me, please?"

Lance cocked his head to one side, thinking, then gave Johnny a smile that made his green eyes sparkle. "It's not idiocy, and no, I don't think I will. It's not my idea to explain, even though I do back it one hundred percent. We do a lot for you, Johnny, but you're not talking us out of this."

Johnny frowned. "Whose idea was it?"

"Mine," Joey said just as JC was about to open his mouth to speak. Joey gave Johnny a hard look, completely unafraid of him, and spoke again. "We wanted something to show our commitment to the group and since JC didn't want a tattoo, rings made the most sense." Joey lifted his hand and showed Johnny his ring, then went on. "Chris' ring and mine were easy to get because we wear fairly common sizes, and we'll have the other three in a few days." Joey folded his arms across his chest and looked at Johnny, obviously not willing to compromise.

Johnny looked at Joey for a long moment and then said, "I don't know what you boys are up to, but playing games can ruin your careers. I hope you realize that."

Chris scowled. "Is that a threat, Johnny?"

Johnny sighed and shook his head, rubbing his eyes with one hand before he looked at Chris. "No, Chris," he said, "I wouldn't threaten you, I'm just trying to warn you." He turned then and hit fast forward on the tape, scanning forward just a bit to stop it and hit play again. "What do you see wrong here?"

On the screen Justin was grinning and talking animatedly about Britney while the others looked at him or the interviewer, smiling and seeming perfectly normal down to the fact Chris was jiggling his knee just like he did in most interviews. After about ten more seconds of tape, Lance reached back over his shoulder to put his hand on Chris' knee without even looking, rubbing absently a few times until Chris stopped moving, then he patted it and let his hand drop again.

Johnny stopped the tape. "Well?" he asked, looking at Lance. "What was that? You agreed not to touch each other in interviews anymore after that fiasco between Justin and Chris on Rosie, much less pet each other. What were you thinking?"

"Johnny, it's not like we could keep from touching each other this time." JC gestured to the television and went on, "It's not our fault the station wanted five people to sit on a loveseat made for two, maybe three people."

Johnny gave JC a withering look. "That's not what I was talking about, JC. I was talking about Lance playing with Chris' knee with that little smile on his face. There are enough rumors about him without--"

Chris jumped up then, glaring as interrupted Johnny. "Hold it right there, man, before you sound any more like Lou. What kind of rumors are we talking about here?"

Johnny looked right back at Chris, annoyed enough not to back down even though he knew Chris was the toughest one in the group. "Don't play with me, Chris, you know exactly what rumors I'm talking about. The rumor that he's gay is pretty strong right now, especially since he took it upon himself to let gay fans take pictures of their friends dancing with him in that bar after that award show a few months ago. This interview went out over the wire to hundreds of entertainment shows and I'm not going to be the only one to notice him getting all touchy-feely with you."

Justin snorted. "We were all at that bar, and so were Brit and Pink and a dozen other folks in the music business for that matter. Brit and I stood for some pictures I seem to recall you liking when they were in the papers, and there was a picture of Lance and Alecia - that would be Pink to you - together in that same paper that made it pretty obvious he's not gay. As for the 'touchy-feely' crap, he was just making Chris hold still. I would have done the same thing, only I wouldn't have been as nice about it and you'd be fussing at me right now for not being the perfect sweet baby Sync the PR people want. What is Lance - or any of us for that matter - supposed to do to keep you happy, grope women in public on demand but never touch any of our friends?"

Johnny pursed his lips. "You're being purposefully dense about this, guys. I know dancing at a gay bar or touching each other in public doesn't have to mean anything. It's what other people think we have to worry about here."

"No, Johnny," Chris said, smiling suddenly and surprising the others. "That's not what we have to worry about. We have to worry about doing our jobs: singing, dancing, signing pictures, riding a bus for days on end, sleeping only a few hours at a time, and sitting through interviews and photo shoots with idiots who dress us up like rejects from a 70's B-movie. You should be doing your job, arranging our appearances and making sure we stay happy, not nitpicking over crap nobody with a life would ever notice, much less complain about."

Chris looked around at the others then and asked, "Which of us cares if some reporter who doesn't like us anyway - because the reporters who do like us won't even notice something so stupid - writes a story over this interview?"

Joey stood up next to Chris, and was immediately joined by Justin and Lance. "Not me." Joey said with a snort.

"Or me," Justin said.

JC moved to join the others, smiling. "Or me."

"And I don't care either, Johnny, so that makes it unanimous," Lance said.

Chris looked at the other guys, grinning, then at Johnny. "Any questions?"

Johnny stared at them for a minute or two before he finally spoke. "So that's it, huh? You don't want me to try and help you guys not to make stupid mistakes anymore? I'm just supposed to stay out of the way and make sure you have plenty to do."

Chris and Lance nodded, but Justin beat them both to a reply. "Pretty much, yeah," Justin said with a grin. "Johnny, we appreciate all you've done for us, don't get us wrong, but we're all old enough that we don't need a babysitter. Well, not besides Lance anyway, and he's not looking for an assistant. He gets us outta bed in the morning and tells us where to be when, and he makes sure we don't get drunk in public too often or wear the same clothes two days in a row, and he just generally runs the whole show off stage whether he wants to or not."

Joey laughed at that, and Chris and JC returned Justin's grin while Lance just smiled.

Johnny turned and took the tape out of the VCR. "Okay guys. If you hang yourselves out to dry it's not my fault from here on out. I'll stay out of the way unless you ask for my help."

"Thanks, we appreciate it," Chris said, grinning at Johnny but somehow not looking the least bit friendly. "Oh, and while you're at it, do something about that Bobbee bitch... She's spreading it all over California that we're all gay and doing JC, and being an 'Nsync girlfriend got her the attention of people normally too smart to listen to a skank like her. It's all lies of course - for the record nobody in this group has ever fucked JC or been fucked by him - but she's telling her lies to people who are spreading it as gospel straight from his girlfriend. You caused the problem, Johnny, so you fix it or I will, but I do not think you want me to have to do it."

Johnny rolled his eyes. "Bobbee was JC's girlfriend, I did not hire her."

JC was shocked and then angry and would have said something but Justin didn't give him a chance to. "Johnny, don't even try that shit with us," Justin said, his eyes and voice hard. "JC has been my best friend since I was twelve years old, and I know he would never lie to us - to me - for any reason. He says you told him to date her because he was causing too many rumors, and as far as we're concerned that means you were trying to get him a beard he didn't even need. That makes her your problem whether you actually paid her or not. He didn't need you to bring in some skank to ruin his rep - which was good until then - and we don't need you trying to tell us you didn't do it. Give up, shut up, and take care of it."

"We like you, Johnny," Lance added, trying to be reasonable, "but we're getting tired of being treated like stupid kids who don't have the sense God gave a goose. I run my own management firm, I do your job for other people, okay? You are part of what you like to call 'the 'Nsync machine' because we want you to be. We're all quite capable of thinking, we're not teenagers anymore, and we can take care of ourselves. We don't have to put up with anything anymore, not from you or anyone else, and certainly not from trash like Bobbee."

Johnny raised his free hand, looking away. "Okay, okay. I'll have my lawyer have a talk with her, I'm sure she'll back off. You can consider me out of your way, other than scheduling. Anything else you want?"

The guys exchanged glances, then Lance spoke up. "Yeah, there is. We have a week off, and we don't want you scheduling anything into it without asking us first. We're all tired and we need some time to relax."

Johnny nodded. "Fair enough, you guys have been working pretty hard. The only thing I was considering for you this week was a gig at a club in Myrtle Beach. The owner heard you'd be in town there a few days, and he offered you the choice of judging, being guests of honor or playing DJ for a shag contest. I thought you guys might enjoy it so I was going to ask you about it... Do you want me to send you the specifics, or just tell him no?"

"It sounds like fun; send me the information and I'll look it over tomorrow," Lance said, nodding. He glanced rather pointedly at his watch, then back at Johnny. "We should go now, we're gonna be nearly an hour late starting the soundcheck by the time we get rigged up."

"You're right, I'm gone." Johnny moved towards the door ahead of the others, then stopped and looked back at them. "You guys do know I don't care one way or the other if any of you are gay or not, right? I'm not some homophobic asshole, I'm just trying to look out for you."

Lance smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "We know."

Johnny looked at him for a long moment and then replied, "Alright, I won't ask again. I'm sorry I went off on you, I was just worried. You five don't seem to understand that the business doesn't forgive easily and never really forgets anything. What you guys do off stage is your business, I get that, just try to remember you're on stage anytime you're not behind a locked door, okay?"

Justin grinned then and quoted, "'All the world's a stage, and the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances, and one man in his time plays many parts.'"

"Infant!" Chris exclaimed, looking shocked. "When did you learn Shakespeare?! I'm sure you never did that play at the mouse house, and I know you don't read!"

"I do so!" Justin said, then stuck his tongue out at Chris. "I read it for school, I had a whole semester of Shakespearean plays. I really liked some of them, too. I still have a copy of _As You Like It_ somewhere on the bus, or at least it was..."

Lance grinned. "It's on the bookshelf, fancy that, between _Interview With a Vampire_ and JC's never-used-or-it-would-be-lost rhyming dictionary."

The guys laughed at the look on JC's face at that. It was a running joke that one of them always bought him a rhyming dictionary for his birthday because he always lost it within a few weeks.

Johnny just shook his head. "You boys try to behave on your time off, okay? I'll be in touch." He waved and walked out without waiting for a reply.

Almost as soon as he was gone Lonnie stepped inside the door, closing it behind him. "Everything okay?" he asked.

Lance smiled at him and replied, "Yeah, Lonnie, everything is fine. Johnny just needed to learn a few things, that's all."

Lonnie grinned. "I hope you gave him both barrels! Now c'mon, boss. The sound guys are foaming at the mouth, the fans are chanting your names, and Anthony wants you to do a quick run through with the trap doors."

The guys laughed and followed him out of the room. Everything else might change from town to town, but the routine leading up to a concert was almost always the same.

 


	11. Chapter 11

 

 

~~~~11~~~~

 

The guys headed down the hallway back towards their dressing room right after soundcheck, laughing and ricocheting off the walls and just generally acting goofy. It had gone well, and the fans had been great about the delay, and now they had thirty minutes to kill before they had to get into their concert clothes and makeup.

Lonnie was behind them moving much more sedately, watching with a grin as Chris, JC, and Justin did flips down the hallway past their door, then ran back to join Lance and Joey as they reached the dressing room. They went in still laughing, but realized immediately it was occupied and quieted to look around and see who was there.

Shelly was standing by the counter setting up her makeup kit while Rebecca sat in one of the chairs watching her. The red-haired gofer the group had met that morning, Kyle, and a wide-eyed teenaged girl were on the small couch nearby. JC and Lance both glanced over to check that the door to their lounge, now marked with the familiar sign saying Quiet Room, was closed and then looked back at the people in the room, smiling.

"Hey everyone," Justin spoke first, smiling apologetically. "Sorry we're late, we had a meeting and got started on soundcheck later than we should have."

Shelly snorted and walked towards the door, "Why am I not surprised? I'm going to go get something to eat and then find Michelle and Julie... We'll be here by seven to get you into wardrobe, okay? Christopher, stay out of my stuff!"

Chris stuck his tongue out at her, not deigning to reply. He'd played with her eyeliner just one time and she'd harped on it for over a week now. Shelly was more than a little mad at all of them though, not just Chris; she heard them commenting on Lance's makeup after the last concert and hadn't appreciated it.

"Sure, have fun," Lance said with a smile, watching Shelly leave before he turned his attention to Rebecca. "Nice to see you again, I gather you got my note?"

Rebecca nodded, grinning. "Yeah, and I had the night free so I decided to come see what sort of trouble you five get into and hear a bit of your music. This nice young lady here was just telling me how great you are." Rebecca smiled at the girl, who was blushing furiously.

JC smiled at the girl and offered her his hand. "Hi, you must be Liz, right? I'm JC."

Liz was still wide-eyed but otherwise she kept her cool pretty well as she smiled and shook JC's hand. "Um, I know. I'm Liz, yeah... I love your music, especially the new single, _Selfish_."

JC smiled at Liz and said, "Thank you, it's always nice to hear that the fans like our songs, especially the ones I helped write." He grinned at her and went on, "I'm sure you probably know who we are, but I'll introduce everyone anyway." He gestured then and said, "This is Chris."

Chris grinned at her and swept a bow, flourishing an imaginary cape and making Rebecca and Liz laugh.

JC grinned and went on, "And this is Joey..."

Joey smiled at the girl. "I really like your shirt. Garbage is pretty cool."

"Thanks," Liz said, blushing. She was wearing a black t-shirt with a large pink multiflora rose on the front, just like the one on the band's newest record, and the word _beautifulgarbage_ across it below the flower as well as several signatures done in pink paint. "Ms. Manson gave it to me when the group did my uncle's show a few weeks ago. I really like their new record, especially _Untouchable_ , but not as much as I like you guys."

JC grinned at Liz. "My favorite off the new record is probably _Cherry Lips_ , it reminds me of somebody I know." Who he had to be talking about was obvious to anyone who had heard the song. It was about a boy who 'looks just like a girl' with 'blue eyes' and 'golden curls' who 'makes the whole world wanna dance'. JC thought it fit Justin pretty well - even the 'grown men gasp when you go walking past' part because JC had seen it happen on more than one occasion - but Justin didn't agree.

Justin made an annoyed noise as he swatted JC, not the least bit amused even though Liz giggled.

JC grinned unrepentantly as he went on, "I'm sure you recognize Justin, and this is the brains of the group, Lance."

"Hello." Lance gave the girl a bright grin and she blushed again.

Rebecca was pretty surprised that JC took the lead after what she'd seen of him that morning, and after watching a few minutes she was completely impressed by the way all five young men treated the girl. The guys were being sweet and funny and acting pretty much like any group of men their ages would when faced with a pretty girl, and Rebecca found herself liking them even more.

Shelly had talked to her for a little while before Kyle and Liz came in, and she had nothing but good things to say about the group, as did Kyle, and the bodyguard who'd shown Rebecca back to this dressing room had been very nice, too. She hadn't heard anyone with a serious complaint about them yet except Bobbee, and Kyle had said several times how much nicer they were than O-Town or Backstreet, their main competition.

Rebecca thought it was interesting that Kyle had met all three groups and only had much good to say about 'Nsync. He had told her that Backstreet wasn't conceited - they were convinced - and O-Town had delusions of Backstreet-hood, but 'Nsync was the real thing and didn't even seem to know it. They truly seemed to be exactly what they had always said they were: five very lucky young men who had built up a great group of people around them and were having the time of their lives working eighteen hours a day.

Kyle finally spoke up then, grinning at the guys. "I don't remember if I ever introduced myself this morning. I'm Kyle. Thanks again for the passes." Liz nodded vigorously.

The guys grinned at them and Joey said, "No problem, glad you two could come. Why don't you have a seat? We've got a little bit to hang out and talk until we have to get into wardrobe."

The guys insisted Liz and Kyle take the couch, and after a few minutes Lance and Joey were in the makeup chairs on either side of the one Rebecca was in while JC, Justin, and Chris sat in the floor. Rebecca let the guys talk to Liz for a while, watching and smiling as they told the girl about some of the places they'd been and things they had seen.

They mentioned that they were supposed to have the next week off, and that they were spending most of it in Myrtle Beach because they wanted some time to hang out and just be normal guys. Liz asked them what it was like to be celebrities so many people recognized then, and got to hear several funny stories about times they had tried unsuccessfully to go incognito. Then Justin told her about the time they went 'native' too well and weren't able to get back into their own hotel because of security until one of their own men was called down to identify them, which had Liz and Rebecca both giggling.

After several more stories Lance finally admitted it was hard sometimes not being able to go most places without guards to keep the fans from mobbing them, but he said it was just part of the job, something that surprised Rebecca. Kyle asked about the scariest time they'd been mobbed next, and Rebecca saw the quick look JC shot Justin even though nobody else seemed to notice it. Justin told the two teenagers about the most recent time he'd been pulled off the stage and into the crowd, and by the time he was done everyone was very quiet.

Rebecca finally broke the silence, asking how many shows they had cancelled because of the incident, and was shocked when Chris said that they had finished that show and they hadn't cancelled any others. Liz asked Justin how he could perform with a broken wrist and he just shrugged and told her that they never stopped a show if there was any way to go on. If they could still sing, the show went on.

Lance changed the subject then, asking Liz questions about herself and her school, and soon had diverted them to more funny stories that had Liz and Kyle both laughing until Shelly and three young women came in.

"Okay guys, playtime is over!" Shelly said, clapping her hands. "Time to get all prettied up for the kids. Chop, chop!"

There was a chorus of groans from the group, making Liz, Kyle, and Rebecca laugh as the three young women by the door grinned. Shelly, Michelle, and Julie were quite used to the guys' antics and knew they weren't seriously complaining, just pretending to. JC stood easily after a moment and offered Chris a hand up as Lance talked to Liz and Kyle.

"Joanna here is one of our assistants," Lance said with a smile as he gestured to the shorter red-haired young woman. "She'll show you around and keep you two company until the concert unless you have plans. If you do, just let her know and she'll help however she can, right, Jo?"

Joanna nodded, smiling at Liz. "If you two will come with me I can show you the stage and the control room, or anything else you're interested in seeing." Joanna waited for them both to say quick goodbyes and then led them out of the room, leaving the five guys with Rebecca and the makeup ladies.

"Rebecca, if you'd like you could wait in our lounge," Lance said with a smile, "or one of the guys can show you to the catering room, or to the control room. You could even watch the concert from there, it'd be a lot more comfortable for you and you wouldn't have to listen to thousands of screaming teenies."

Rebecca laughed. "I came by to say hi and see the show, so the control room sounds good, but I've got a question before I go. When are you guys gonna take some time to eat? Would you like me to go get you a pizza or something? I found a great little place not to far from here... I had lunch there, and their supreme pizza is fabulous."

Julie snorted. "These idiots get too hyper before a concert to hold still long enough to eat."

Shelly laughed, nodding. "Getting them to hold still long enough for makeup is a real accomplishment."

Lance grinned at the two women as JC said, "We'll probably eat at the hotel tonight. We didn't have lunch until nearly three so we're good."

"How late is that pizza place open?" Chris asked, grinning.

"Umm... Midnight I think it said," Rebecca answered. "Why?"

Joey and Chris grinned at each other while Justin said, "Because Chris gets to pick dinner tonight and he already decided on pizza. Now if we're lucky we won't have to spend an hour driving around looking for an open pizza place whenever it is we get out of here tonight."

Rebecca chuckled, shaking her head. "Do you guys really do that to your poor bus driver?"

Lance snorted and nodded, giving the other four a slightly exasperated look. "Yes, they do! We're lucky Andy is so tolerant or he'd just lose them the next time they want to stop for ice cream at three am."

Michelle and Julie giggled at that, but Shelly just shook her head and said, "Rebecca, unless you came to see some skin it's probably a good idea for you to head to the control room now. If I don't get these clowns started on getting ready soon they'll never be ready to intro the opening act."

Rebecca grinned at Shelly. "Okay, okay, I'm going." She walked over towards the door and said, "Just in case I don't catch you guys after the concert, I've had a lot of fun meeting you. I'll be sure to keep the pass so whenever you're performing nearby I can come say hi."

"Great!" Lance said with a big smile. "We'll look forward to seeing you again. We'll probably be around for half an hour or so after the concert. Long enough for Lonnie and the local security people to clear the rear entrance so we can get out again."

Rebecca shook her head, amused. "No matter what you guys say I'm sure it must be getting old to have all those kids screaming at you."

JC smiled wryly and nodded as Justin said, "Yeah, sometimes, but it would be worse for them to stop. We love what we do, and we can only keep going as long as they want to see us."

Chris nodded. "Yeah. We'll all be deaf by then, but we hope the teenies are still screaming 'Justin, I wanna be your baby's momma!' in twenty years."

Justin tried to punch him and Chris dodged around behind him to jump on Justin's back with a whoop, wrapping an arm around his neck as he vigorously rubbed the top of Justin's head and messed up his curls with the other hand. Justin laughed and ducked his head forward, trying unsuccessfully to unwrap Chris' arm from around his neck so he could pull him off.

Rebecca watched them, chuckling, while Shelly gave them a dirty look. "Guys," Shelly said warningly after a minute, "playtime is over."

Chris stopped messing with Justin's hair and made a pouty face at her, still clinging to Justin's back like a monkey while Justin looked gratefully at Shelly. "But Shel-ly...." Chris whined, making Shelly's lips twitch as she tried not to laugh.

JC and Joey were both laughing, and Lance was grinning and shaking his head.

"Now Chris," Shelly said firmly. "Let Justin go so he can shower and then Julie can fix what you just did to his hair."

Chris let his feet drop to the ground, still pouting. "Okay, but I get to play with him after the concert, and you can't stop me then, so there." He stuck his tongue out at Shelly and she finally gave in and laughed.

Rebecca chuckled, shaking her head. "You guys have fun, good luck with the show." She stopped at the door and looked back at Lance. "You said Lonnie would have someone show me the control room, right?"

"Yeah," Lance said, walking quickly over. "Lemme tell him."

Lance walked out of the dressing room with Rebecca as Shelly said loudly, "Okay guys, showers, now! We have forty-five minutes until showtime. Don't forget to shave, and JC that means all of your chin, okay sweetie?"

Justin and Chris' laughter followed Rebecca and Lance into the hall.

Rebecca chuckled and looked at Lance. "You five are something else, you know that, right?"

Lance grinned. "Well, they are. I'm just the geeky guy from Mississippi who had the right voice and got lucky enough to tag along with them." They were walking down the hallway to where Lonnie had his security table set up at the end of it, watching everyone who went by.

Rebecca's eyebrows went up. "You have got to be joking! Even compared to the other guys, your only real competition is JC; he's beautiful but you're gorgeous."

By the time she had finished Lance was bright red and they had reached the security table, giving him an excuse to change the subject. "Lonnie, Rebecca needs somebody to show her up to the control room. Is Dre or Scott available?"

Lonnie had heard what Rebecca said and he smiled at her. "Yeah, Scott's just down the hall in the catering room." He turned to look down the hallway to the right and bellowed, "SCOTTY!" then looked back at Rebecca with twinkling eyes. "He'll be here presently."

Rebecca giggled. "I just love how high-tech your paging system is."

Lonnie grinned then and said, "Well, I guess I could have just called him on the ear monitor..." They looked up then at the sound of running feet as Scott came down the hallway. "But this way he moves much faster," Lonnie finished with a chuckle.

Scott stopped by them, looking surprised and a little confused. "Yeah, boss? Something wrong?"

Lonnie gestured to Lance, who said, "This is Rebecca, she needs somebody to show her up to the control room and keep her company during the show."

Scott gave Rebecca a slightly wry grin. "Sure, no problem. I can even explain how a lot of it is done for you, ma'am."

Lance grinned. "Great," he said, then turned to Rebecca. "Hope you enjoy the show. I hate to run, but Shelly will kill me if I don't get back in there to make the guys behave."

"Go, I don't want you getting in trouble with Shelly. I'm sure Scott can answer any questions I might have." Rebecca grinned at Lance and watched as he waved and then headed back down the hallway at a fast trot, then turned back to Scott and Lonnie. "I'm ready to go when you are," she said with a grin.

"Let's get going then, it's a long walk," Scott said with a smile.

Rebecca gestured for him to lead the way and then followed Scott off down the hallway.

 


	12. Chapter 12

 

 

~~~~12~~~~

 

Lance walked back into the dressing room to find Shelly, Michelle, and Julie sitting in the three makeup chairs with no sign of the guys.

Shelly looked over at Lance and grinned. "Just who we needed to see! Go tell those idiots to quit playing, please? They were hootin' and hollerin' over something a couple minutes ago."

Lance grabbed his gym bag off the floor and gave her a wry look as he walked across the room to the bathroom door. "I'll try. If we're not out of there in fifteen minutes, send someone in to rescue me, okay?"

Michelle laughed. "We will."

Lance gave the girls a quick grin and then disappeared through the door. He hadn't been in the bathroom yet at this venue, and was surprised to see it was rather like what you'd find in an older gym. There was a short passage directly in front of the door that ended in a blank wall and a side hallway, with a doorway about halfway down the hall. When he reached the first doorway he found it led to a side room with two large enclosed showers and a small changing area, so he rightly assumed you had to go around the corner to get to the sinks and stalls. Both showers were running so Lance continued down the hall and around the corner, not too surprised to find Chris and Joey both in their underwear, standing in front of a counter with several sinks, shaving.

"What was all the hollering about? Shelly said you were in here acting up, but you actually seem to be behaving yourselves." Lance tossed his bag in the floor with the others and then leaned against the wall to watch them shave. He always took the last shower so there wasn't really anything for him to do until JC or Justin was done except keep Chris out of trouble.

Joey looked over at Lance after a moment and grinned. "JC and Justin were being their usual clueless selves until they realized me and Chris were watching them check each other out as they got undressed. JC ran for the showers then as red as I ever saw him, and Justin waited a minute to give JC time to get in the shower before he followed. That's when he got in the shower JC was using and got an eyeful."

Lance laughed. "You're kidding!"

Chris gave Lance a wicked grin in the mirror and said, "He's not! We ran in there when we heard JC yelp. You should have seen how red Justin's face was when he came running back out of that shower and Joey asked him why he didn't just stay and enjoy the view. I've never seen the Infant blush like that, not even the time his sweat pants fell down in rehearsal and Wade said he had a nice ass."

Lance chuckled, shaking his head. "You two are so cruel. They can't help it that they're both still blushing virgins."

"I am not!" JC said, flicking Lance's ear as he walked past him to go shave. "Shower's free. Joe, you're next, right?"

Chris eyebrows went up but he kept shaving. "Yep, Joe's next."

"You're not, huh?" Joey asked JC as he zipped up his shaving kit and carried it back over to where his bag was in the floor with the others.

JC took Joey's spot at the sink, blushing and not meeting anyone's gaze as he opened his own shaving kit. "No, I'm not."

Chris finished finally and put up his razor, grinning at JC. "Not a virgin at all, not a virgin with girls, or not a virgin because you had a blowjob once and that's sex too?"

JC's eyes got a little big at that and he didn't answer for a moment as he took out his electric razor, getting even redder as he finally said, "Well, um... Not at all."

That was not the answer Chris had expected, and it left him speechless for a moment. He had thought JC was the 'marry me first' type for sure.

"Wow," Justin said then, having walked down the short hallway in time to catch the last part of Chris' question and then JC's answer.

Everyone knew Justin was a virgin - the kid had made it plain a thousand times that he was waiting for marriage - and judging by his reaction he was surprised by JC's answer too. Chris and Joey used to pick on Justin because he'd actually answer the reporters if they asked if he was a virgin, which of course encouraged more reporters to ask, but JC and Lance had finally convinced them to leave Justin alone about it. The reporters didn't give up as easily though, and Lance finally had the question put on the 'off-limits' list that went in their media packet.

"How did y'all get on this subject, and more importantly how did you get JC to talk?" Justin asked, grinning.

"Justin!" JC exclaimed, giving him a dirty look, but Justin just grinned unrepentantly at him and moved towards his bag.

Lance snorted and started stripping efficiently, tossing his clothes in the general direction of where everyone else had thrown theirs. "Chris and Joey were being nosy, and C actually answered them. Josh, you do realize that'll only encourage more questions of a similar type in the future, right?" he said, looking at JC as he tossed his shoes and socks over by his gym bag with his belt and then unzipped his jeans, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Chris and Joey were both watching him.

"Hey, great idea," Joey said, grinning as he avidly watched Lance take off his pants. "If we share we'll save water."

Lance glanced over at Joey without saying anything as he stepped out of his jeans and then began to empty the pockets onto the counter.

"Joe, dude," Chris said with a grin, "did you really think that line would work?"

Joey raised an eyebrow at him and asked, "Why wouldn't it?" then looked back at Lance, rather obviously admiring his ass as Lance put his wallet and a ring of keys on the counter.

Chris snorted and asked, "Can you actually picture Lance sharing a shower?"

Joey looked at Chris and then back at Lance's ass again as he grinned wickedly. "Oh yeah. It's lots of fun."

Chris' eyes widened and he looked from Lance to Joey and back, his almost comically shocked expression making Justin laugh.

Lance finally tossed his jeans on the pile of clothes and grabbed a towel off the nearby rack, then started past Chris and Joey. He paused in the doorway to look back at them, smirking. "Well? Are you coming or not?" He didn't wait for a reply before he continued around the corner, heading for the showers.

"God, I hope so," Joey said with a grin as he followed Lance.

"Amen." Chris grabbed a towel and hurried to follow right behind Joey, wide-eyed but grinning ear to ear.

Justin snorted and walked over to the sink next to JC's, opening his shaving kit before he put it on the counter.

"I never would have expected that from Lance," JC said, blushing as he tipped his head back to shave under his chin.

Justin grinned and squirted shaving cream in his hand. "Me either, I always thought he was the shy type, like you."

JC's eyebrows went up and he paused to watch Justin lather his face a moment before he spoke, trying to ignore Joey's laughter which could just be heard over the noise of the showers. "You think I'm shy?"

Justin laughed and then picked up his razor and started to shave, watching JC in the mirror. "Yeah Josh, you're definitely shy. Hadn't you noticed?"

JC started shaving again, looking thoughtful. "Well, no, not really. I mean, shy people don't like to be on stage or anything, and I love it..."

The buzz of JC's razor was the only sound for a moment after he spoke, then there was a yelp from the showers, followed by Chris' voice. "Dammit, Joe-bear, watch what you're doing!"

Joey's amusement-filled voice could just barely be heard when he replied, "I was watching Critter, I promise."

"Settle down, you two," Lance said, sounding just as amused as Joey, "or I'm gonna settle you."

"You think you can, Bassman?" Chris asked then in a belligerent tone.

There was silence for a moment, then a chuckle that was either Lance or Joey, then a quiet moan that was definitely Chris and made JC turn bright red as he put his razor down hurriedly.

Justin turned his head sideways as he did one cheek, ignoring the noises as he watched his razor in the mirror. "I didn't mean shy all the time, Josh, I mean shy about stuff to do with sex."

"Oh," JC said, then heard a squeak followed by low chuckle that was definitely Lance and blushed even redder, ignoring Justin's grin. "Okay, maybe I am, a little," he said finally, still blushing as he rubbed a hand over his face to make sure he hadn't missed anywhere.

Justin snorted and kept shaving, trying not to listen too closely to the noises that could just barely be heard over the sound of the showers. He hoped that the girls couldn't hear them out in the dressing room, or there would be a lot of explaining to do.

JC put his razor down on the counter and stood quietly just watching Justin shave for a few minutes until he heard a rather loud groan and turned as red as could be, again. "I don't want to stand here and listen to them," he blurted then, "but I don't want to go past the showers either."

Justin chuckled. "Josh baby, go ahead and go. I'm sure you won't see anything, and you can make sure they can't hear them out in the dressing room, okay?" Justin tipped his head back to do his neck, glancing at JC between swipes of his razor.

"Okay," JC said after almost a minute more of listening to the other three and going through half a dozen shades of red. "Um, I'm going." He watched Justin until he heard a low growl from the shower and then abruptly turned and left, almost running down the hallway as he hurried out.

Justin chuckled again and continued shaving, humming softly to himself so he wouldn't have to listen to the other three and wondering how long it would take him to coax JC into a shower. It sounded like lots of fun, and he already knew that JC looked really good all naked and wet. Justin grinned, wondering how many times he could 'accidentally' walk in on JC naked before JC would figure out it wasn't an accident.

Chris came bouncing around the corner grinning from ear to ear a few minutes later, just as Justin was putting away JC's razor. "This is gonna be a great show," he crowed.

Lance rounded the corner right after him with a rather smug grin on his face and went to his bag to put his shoes and belt in it and get out his shaving kit.

Chris stood by the door and watched Lance with a wicked little grin, plainly waiting for somebody to say something - anything - that would give him an excuse to start something.

Joey walked in a moment later and went over to start gathering up the clothes scattered in the floor, grinning because he could tell Chris was just begging for a chance to play. He was as hyper and bouncy as he usually was on the adrenalin rush after a concert, but Joey knew that Chris would work it off on stage.

Chris grabbed his bag after a moment and went out into the dressing room, still grinning and wondering what sort of trouble he could cause before Lance got out there.

Justin turned to look at Lance as he zipped up JC's shaving kit, giving him a grin. "We don't mind y'all playing where we can hear you - really we don't - but next time could you wait until JC is through shaving? If he didn't use an electric razor he would have cut his throat when Chris started making those noises... As it is he nearly dropped it."

Joey started laughing then and Lance walked up to the sink, opening his shaving kit as he moved. "Sorry," Lance said, grinning unrepentantly. "That was my fault. I'll remember next time to keep him quiet if JC is around." He grinned wickedly at the thought of a few ways he could keep Chris - who seemed to definitely be the noisy type - quiet. It would be a lot of fun to try.

Justin wanted to ask what Lance had done to make Chris sound like that, but after watching Lance shave for a moment he abruptly turned to go put up the two shaving kits he held and put his and JC's shoes in their bags. Justin was nosy and he would ask the other guys almost anything, but that particular question was too embarassing even for him.

Joey was tossing Chris' jeans onto the pile he was making when Justin turned around. Joey winked at him, earning a snort as Justin carried the shaving kits over to put them and the two pairs of shoes still in the floor away. As soon as he'd zipped up JC's bag he got out the laundry bag Lance usually carried and went over to help Joey with the clothes. With both of them working it only took a minute or two to get them all gathered up and bagged. Joey slung his gym bag and the clothes over his shoulder as Justin grabbed his bag and JC's, then they both went back out into the dressing room.

"Justin!" Julie called as soon as he stepped through the door. "It's about time! Throw down those bags and get over here, we've got to get you dressed so I can do your hair."

Justin paused to look towards the sound of her voice and saw the petite blond was standing by the rack of clothes in one corner, tapping her foot while Chris pulled on a second pair of pants and JC buttoned a shirt. The way the wardobe people dressed them in layer after layer for concerts had never made a lot of sense to the guys - they would rather just change between songs like in the old days - but they went along with it. Fully dressed they would all be wearing a wifebeater, t-shirt, button-down shirt and jacket or vest that would all be gone before the concert was half over, not to mention three pairs of pants they'd start out with and still have to change completely during the concert or the different pairs of shoes they would wear.

"Gimme a second woman, Jesus!" Justin said, giving her a mock glare. "I'm coming, keep your pants on."

Chris stifled a laugh, drawing a dirty look from JC.

Julie snorted. "We've got less than forty-five minutes to get you guys ready to go, so move faster, Timberlake! We all know your hair will take me at least ten minutes, and your makeup will take even longer."

Chris chuckled, watching as JC walked over to one of the makeup chairs to submit himself to Michelle's capable hands.

Justin made a face at Julie as he tossed the bags he carried in the corner closest to the door, then noticed Rafe on the couch and grinned. "Hey man," Justin said as he walked quickly over to Julie, "when did you get here?"

Julie shoved a pair of pants in Justin's hands. "Put these on while you run your mouth."

Justin stuck his tongue out at Julie but started dressing, muttering, "Bossy thing tonight, aren't you?"

Rafe chuckled. "I got here just after Lance went in to make y'all get a move on. You guys are really running late tonight, what's the deal?"

Joey made a face as he pulled his jeans on. "We were late already when Johnny showed up while we were on the way to soundcheck and had to talk to us. That put us almost an hour behind on everything since."

Rafe cocked his head to one side as he watched Chris putting on his jacket. "What'd Johnny want? I thought he was on vacation."

Chris went to sit in one of the makeup chairs. "He is, he just wanted to fuss at us about that damned interview this morning. We didn't breathe right."

Joey and Justin both chuckled at that, thinking it was as good an explanation as any. Johnny would probably complain about how they breathed too if he thought some reporter somewhere might comment on it.

Lance came out of the bathroom with his bag a moment later, giving Rafe a grin when he saw him. "Hey, glad you made it." He walked over and kicked the other bags into something resembling a pile and dropped his on top, then walked over to the clothes racks to start getting dressed. Lance was notably the only one Julie didn't hand his clothes to; she knew he could be trusted to get dressed on his own, in his clothes, and to do it more quickly than any of the others to boot.

"I told you I would, man," Rafe said with a grin as he watched them hurrying into their clothes, glad he didn't ever have to try and dress that quick, or dance in that many clothes.

Joey was buttoning his vest and Justin had just barely finished pulling on his jacket when Julie said, "Alright Justin, now get your ass in the chair so I can take care of your 'fro."

Justin made a face at her and did as he was told, leaving Lance to finish dressing while Joey went to go sit on the couch with Rafe and wait for Michelle to finish Chris' hair.

Not quite thirty minutes later all five guys were ready and Shelly firmly admonished them not to mess up their hair or makeup just before the three women left them to their own devices until showtime. The group went into their lounge where Joey and Lance sat on the couch and Justin flopped down in one of the chairs, but JC and Chris were already hyped because it was almost showtime and wanted to play. After a quick discussion JC switched CD's in the stereo and then he and Chris began headbanging and dancing as Kid Rock's _Cowboy_ played.

Justin watched through the next two songs before he glanced over at the couch and smiled at what he saw. Lance was watching Chris and JC with a smile while he absently played with Joey's hand where it rested on his thigh, and Joey was watching Lance's face with a little smile. Joey noticed Justin watching him then and winked at him, then looked over at JC and Chris. Justin went back to watching them dance then too, chuckling after a few minutes when JC did a particularly difficult move.

"Jesus, C," Chris said then, "do you have any bones?!"

JC just grinned at him and didn't answer, instead doing the same move again with such obvious ease that Chris stuck his tongue out at him. Justin jumped up then, grinning, and did the same move with only slightly less grace than JC, making Chris growl and mumble under his breath about Gumby mice.

Lonnie walked in then and said, "Okay guys, let's get going. They're ready to get you rigged up, and you're on stage in ten minutes."

 


	13. Chapter 13

 

 

~~~~13~~~~

 

Chris ran offstage at the end of the concert, followed closely by the others. The show had gone well and the guys were really pumped, laughing and playing as they bounded down the hallways towards their dressing room. The fans had made it obvious they loved the show, especially the new single which was great since the one before it hadn't done as well as they'd hoped and they needed this one to take up a bit of the slack. Lance suspected that JC had written _Selfish_ \- which was essentially a duet between JC and Justin - _for_ Justin. He knew that Justin had said he loved the song when JC offered it to the group, and then JC had walked on air for days.

There was only one problem during the show that night, one the others didn't seem to notice but Lance had picked up on. JC and Justin had spent more time singing to each other than they strictly should have, and the fact they weren't just friends anymore had been fairly obvious on more than one occasion. Lance was thinking he'd have to have a talk with them if the bigwigs at Jive picked it up, but for now he felt they could let it slide because JC and Justin had looked at each other in similar ways on stage a hundred times before and Jive hadn't said anything.

Sure, the fans saw it and discussed JC and Justin on the internet quite a lot - they were speculated about even more often than Lance's 'questionable sexuality' that Jive complained about, which amused Lance to no end - but the people who ran things at Jive didn't seem to notice anything bad about their two lead singers unless it was in the gossip column of the New York Post. Even then Justin could usually talk his way out of whatever the new rumor was since it usually involved him and Brit. JC didn't go out much, so he was seldom in the gossip columns.

The five of them made it into their dressing room finally, all of them soaked with sweat from the concert but still so high on adrenalin that they weren't really very tired. Lance sat down to wait for the makeup ladies, watching the others with a grin.

Joey had sprawled on the couch to watch Chris do an improvised jig while Justin beatboxed, and JC stopped watch them with a grin for a few minutes before he grabbed his gym bag. JC always took a shower before they changed, whether they were getting on the bus for the night or heading straight to a hotel, so nobody was surprised when he disappeared into the bathroom.

Julie walked in then and stopped to watch Chris, giggling as she said, "Chris, you look like a demented elf when you do that. An elf on speed, but still."

Justin stopped beatboxing to laugh at that and Chris stopped too, his eyes going wide with mock outrage as he said, "How dare you, I would never touch speed!" He grinned at Julie, adding just as Shelly walked in, "I'm an elf high on adrenalin and caffinated cola products!"

"Okay, guys," Shelly said in her best no-nonsense tone, closing the door behind her. "Show's over and the rear entrance is supposed to be secure soon, so by the time you get rid of your costumes and makeup you guys can go." Shelly looked rather pointedly at Julie and then at Lance, and Julie grinned and went over to start removing his makeup. Shelly looked over the other three then and went on, "Michelle can take care of Joe when she gets here since he hasn't got much makeup on, and JC can do somebody when he's done with his shower, but one of you needs to get your butt in a chair so I can get started."

Justin started towards the chair obediently, sure that Chris wouldn't want to sit down yet, but Chris grinned and darted past him to sit down first as he called, "Age before beauty!"

Justin laughed and went to go sit on the couch by Joey and watch the others, his tapping foot the only sign he wasn't as calm as he looked. He was still hyped up from the show and wanted to do something, not just sit quietly on a couch and wait for JC to finish his shower. Thinking about JC in the shower made Justin grin as he remembered JC's earlier shower and wondered if he could come up with an excuse to walk in on him again. JC was in there right, but he wouldn't be for long; he never took more than a minute or two to rinse off after a show.

Michelle finally walked in five minutes later and paused just inside the door. "Guys? I ran into Rebecca in the hall, can she come in?" She looked around at the others and then settled on looking at Lance, knowing from long experience that they usually didn't allow fans in the dressing room after a concert but thinking that Rebecca might be an exception. Lance had invited her into their Quiet Room before the show, and even people who had been with the guys for years weren't allowed to bother them in there. Michelle figured this Rebecca woman must have really made an impression on the guys.

Lance grinned and opened his mouth to speak just as Chris said, "Sure, she's cool, let her in."

Michelle opened the door again and stuck her head out, then held it open for Rebecca to come in. Joey got up off the couch then and went to the empty makeup chair, and as soon as Rebecca was inside the dressing room Michelle hurried over to get to work on Joey's makeup.

Justin grinned at Rebecca. "Hey Rebecca, glad you stuck around. What did you think of the show?"

Rebecca laughed. "You guys are amazing, that's what I think! How do you do that for an hour and forty-five minutes every night?"

"It's easy," Joey said, grinning. "Rehearsal is the hard part. That's when Wade makes us dance for 12 hours at a time to build 'muscle memory'."

Chris snorted and added, "Yeah, and that kid never gets tired, so he thinks we shouldn't either. Of course, it doesn't help that JC and Justin can go all day and still feel like going clubbing afterwards, and Lance can usually manage to keep up with them... Me and Joe are the old farts who need a nap about halfway through and a wheelchair by the time he lets us go."

Shelly ignored Chris' talking and kept applying cold cream to his face, wishing he'd hold still but knowing it was useless to tell him to. Chris was always squirming around when someone removed his makeup because he was still too amped up after a concert to be still.

Joey nodded and gave Rebecca a wry grin as he said, "Or a golf cart."

Rebecca giggled. "That is bad."

Shelly glanced away from Chris long enough to see how the makeup removal was going for Joey and Lance, then said acerbically, "Justin, get up and let Rebecca have the couch. I'm sure she doesn't wanna sit next to you all sweaty and stinky."

"I do not stink!" Justin said even as he hopped to his feet, giving Shelly a dirty look.

"Justin, sit back down," Rebecca said, smiling. "I've been sitting in the control room for hours, I'd rather stand a bit."

"I will when I get back, JC ought to be done by now anyway." Justin grinned at her as he started towards the bathroom, deciding now was as good a time as any to make a break for it. He didn't hear the shower running when he stepped through the door, so he walked quickly down the hallway as he called softly, "Josh?"

JC's voice came from the room where the sinks and stalls were. "In here."

Justin walked quickly down the hallway then and around the corner before he paused to look at JC, who was standing in front of the mirror in a pair of low-slung sweatpants. He was scrubbing at his face with a washrag, his hair already slicked back with water from his shower.

JC looked at Justin in the mirror, and when Justin didn't speak after a moment he asked, "Did you need something, J?"

Justin smiled. "Not really, I was just tired of sitting still."

"Okay." JC smiled at him and then started scrubbing his face again, closing his eyes to get the makeup around them.

Justin took advantage of that to walk up behind JC and put his arms around him, smiling at JC in the mirror when his eyes quickly opened. "You look good enough to eat," Justin said softly, nuzzling JC's ear. "Does this count as tonight, or do I have to wait until we get to the hotel?"

JC just watched Justin in the mirror for a long moment, shivering slightly when Justin sucked on his earlobe, then he finally murmured, "The hotel, baby. Then we can do whatever you want, okay?"

Justin lifted his head to grin at JC in the mirror. "Okay, I can wait that long."

JC smiled at him and started scrubbing again at the makeup that was stubbornly clinging to one cheek, leaning back a bit more firmly against Justin's chest without really realizing it. Justin tightened his arms around JC just a bit, smiling and thinking this was the way it always should have been: best friends, but so much more, too.

"What'd you want when you came in?" JC asked again, sure Justin hadn't come in just to watch him wash his face.

Justin smiled a bit wider and watched JC in the mirror as he said softly, "You." JC blushed and looked down as Justin went on, "I was out there with the others and I couldn't quit thinking about you, so I came to find you and steal a kiss or three." Justin knew he was pushing his luck a bit, but he couldn't help himself. He had waited for JC for years, even though he'd known JC was with other people, and now he saw no reason not to spend every possible minute with him.

JC finally met Justin's gaze again. "Was it really an accident when you got in the shower with me?"

Justin grinned. "Well, kinda."

JC snorted then and tried again to scrub the last of the makeup off his cheek. "Justin," he asked after a moment with a little grin, "how can something be kind of an accident? Isn't that like being a little bit pregnant?"

Justin smiled, watching JC in the mirror as he replied, "Well, see, when I started towards the showers, I was so busy thinking about the fact you were in there naked and wet that I wasn't watching where I was going until I reached to open the shower... I saw you then, but I went in anyway."

"Why?" JC asked softly, blushing again. He had finally finished scrubbing his face and put all of his attention on watching Justin in the mirror while he waited for an answer.

"Because I hoped you'd let me join you," Justin answered softly, his gaze meeting JC's in the mirror.

JC didn't know what to say to that so he tossed the rag he'd used into the sink and leaned back against Justin again, smiling when Justin's arms pulled him even more firmly against Justin's chest. JC looked at him in the mirror for a long moment, searching Justin's eyes for something before he said quietly, "I probably would have let you if we had been at the hotel." JC absently ran his hands over Justin's arms, watching Justin's face for a moment as he tried to decide what to say. "I just don't think we should be doing anything in public, okay, baby?" he said finally, still smiling. Justin had a reputation for wanting his own way but he had never seriously questioned it when JC said no. He hardly ever did something he knew JC wouldn't approve of, so JC was pretty sure he wouldn't argue too much about limits on where they could be together.

"I understand," Justin said, leaning forward to kiss JC's cheek before he let him go and stepped back, smiling. "Shelly said you're supposed to get rid of my makeup. You wanna do it in here or out in the dressing room? Oh, and Rebecca's out there talking to the guys, so put your shirt on before we go out." Justin grinned at him then, sure Rebecca wouldn't mind seeing JC half-naked but not willing to share him with anyone he didn't have to.

JC laughed and then moved to the sink to rinse out the rag he'd used for his face. "I'm glad Rebecca stuck around, I'd like to hear what she thought of the show. And I'll do your makeup in here, so take off your shirts and hop up on the counter."

Justin grinned and took off the shirt and wifebeater he was wearing in one smooth motion, then hopped up to sit on the counter between the two sinks. JC moved to stand between his knees and started to gently wash away Justin's makeup, being much more careful than he had been when he was removing his own. Justin rested his hands on JC's waist and held still, closing his eyes and letting JC do his face without a fuss even though he almost always complained when the makeup ladies did the same thing.

JC smiled as he worked, taking the opportunity to stare at the face he'd loved for so many years and wondering what Justin was thinking. Justin had the sort of face that made a person look twice: blue eyes that often looked almost black at first glance, an expressive mouth and that stubborn chin... He wasn't quite as beautiful as Lance, and didn't show as much character as Chris or even Joey's obvious good humor, but Justin's face was still the one JC loved most and he wouldn't change him for the world.

JC was almost through removing Justin's makeup when he heard the door and then Lance walked in. "Good, you thought to do that in here," Lance said with a smile. "You forgot your bag, Justin. You'll need to change in here, too." Lance put Justin's bag down by JC's and then began to efficiently get out of his concert clothes, not even bothering to look up as Joey and Chris came in carrying their own bags.

The two of them started grinning as soon as they saw JC and Justin, and Chris said, "What's wrong, Infant? Couldn't you convince him to go for a quickie?"

Joey chuckled and started stripping out of his concert clothes, dropping them near his feet as he took them off.

Justin gave Chris a dirty look over JC's shoulder. "I didn't even try for one, old man. I intend to take my time and do it right."

JC gave Justin a grin and threw the rag in the sink before he slid his hands around Justin's bare waist and leaned up to kiss him, not at all surprised when Justin immediately pulled him closer. Justin was never an especially patient person, but JC was quickly finding Justin had even less patience for a sweet, chaste kiss than he had for listening to one of Johnny's lectures. Justin wanted a real kiss from JC - complete with tongue and even a bit of groping - every time and any time he could get one.

Chris snorted and began getting out of his own concert clothes, ignoring the two at the counter. JC had always been as sappy as a teenaged girl with a crush over some things, so he wasn't really surprised that he and Justin thought quickies weren't worth the effort. Chris had been around the block a lot more than either of them, and he was of the firm opinion that more sex was better, whether it was a quickie or not.

Lance pulled clean jeans from his gym bag and paused to watch JC and Justin. "JC," he said after it became obvious neither of them was in a hurry to stop, "you've been in here longest. Even allowing for doing Justin's makeup you ought to be ready to go back out before long."

JC reluctantly pulled away from Justin, then smiled and leaned forward to kiss him again quickly before he let go and moved over to his bag to get a t-shirt.

Justin gave Lance a dirty look and slid off the counter, but he didn't argue as he kicked out of the shoes he'd worn for the concert so he could take off the jeans he was wearing. Justin knew Lance was just trying to keep them out of trouble so he wasn't going to complain, but he didn't have to pretend he liked it. In just a few moments he was in his underwear, and he went over to get his sweats and a shirt out of his bag just as JC left the room.

JC walked back out into the dressing room with his gym bag and an armload of clothes and shoes, not very surprised to see only Shelly and Rebecca were still there since the other girls always left as soon as the guys' makeup was off. JC paused to wait for a break in the conversation the two ladies were having - which seemed to be about some fashion show - then asked, "Shelly? Where do you want these?"

Shelly stood and went over to where her bag was, then pulled out a laundry bag. "In here, JC. The shoes you can just toss over there by the racks, okay?" Shelly smiled at him and handed him the bag, then went back over to sit in the makeup chair closest to the door.

JC nodded and did as he'd been told, then walked over to stand near Rebecca and the makeup chairs, smiling. "Nice to see you stuck around."

Rebecca grinned at JC. "I wanted to tell you all how great I thought the show was. You five really impressed me."

JC's eyes went a little wide with surprise as he grinned suddenly. "Really? I thought you didn't like pop music?"

Rebecca laughed and nodded as Lance walked out of the bathroom with Justin at his heels. "I don't, but I love what you guys were doing tonight. Justin was right this morning, your music does have a great beat and I love the lyrics too, especially a couple of them. It was more like club music than most of the pop I hear these days."

Justin handed his bundle of clothes to Lance and took Lance's gym bag to put it with the others before he joined JC by Rebecca.

"Which ones?" Lance asked with a grin as he stuffed his clothes and then Justin's in the bag JC had left in the floor near the clothes racks.

Rebecca looked over at him and smiled. "Well," she said, "one of them was _Girlfriend_ \- I love the choreography for it too, you guys are sexy as hell - and I think the other was called _Selfish_. My friend Harry is going to love that one, I know." She grinned at them and went on, "If your concert is a good sampling of your music, I have to get your records so I'll know what else I'm missing." Rebecca grinned at the three young men and was about to go on when they heard a yell from the bathroom, followed quickly by Chris running out laughing.

JC, Justin, and Lance turned to see what he was up to just as Chris darted to put them between him and the bathroom and Joey came out glowering, the front of his shirt soaking wet.

Joey tossed his bag and his concert outfit and shoes down on the floor and then started towards Chris, looking murderous. "I'm gonna get you for that you little..."

Chris was positively giggling as he grabbed JC's shoulders and made him turn to keep JC between him and Joey. "C'mon Joe, it was funny. You can change to a dry shirt on the bus." JC was grabbed as a shield by Chris more often than anyone else for the simple reason nobody was willing to tackle him just to get Chris. JC bruised easily and none of them wanted to hurt him accidentally.

Shelly smirked and said, "No he can't, your bus went ahead to the hotel so the fans would think you left."

Chris gave her a quick dirty look just as JC twisted free and bolted for safety, laughing. Chris dodged quickly around behind Lance then, ducking his head down to hide as though that would help but not daring to grab Lance's shoulders. He knew that Lance just might turn around and help Joey tackle him if he did. "Laaance," Chris begged, "talk some sense into him, please? All I did was throw a little water at him..."

Rebecca watched them, grinning and wondering what Lance would do.

Lance snorted and turned to give Chris an unreadable look, reaching out without looking to put a hand on Joey's chest and stop him. "And why should I? You were supposed to be changing clothes, not picking on Joe! I oughta let him tromp you good, maybe it'd teach you a lesson." Lance dropped his hand from Joey's chest then and paused as though thinking about it.

Chris' eyes got a little wider and he began to back away, then Lance went on, "Or I could just help him." Lance grinned wickedly and stepped towards Chris, who yelped and ran back into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

Lance chuckled and turned to look at Joey then, seeing he was fairly wet and still looking a bit annoyed. "Joe, I have a t-shirt in my bag if you want it. It'll be tight, but at least it's dry."

Joey smiled a little wryly. "Thanks, Scoop, I definitely want it." Joey didn't even think about it when he pulled the wet t-shirt over his head as Lance walked over to where he'd thrown his bag down.

"Joseph!" Shelly said, frowning. "You know better than to do that in front of fans! I'm sure Rebecca does not want to see your hairy beer belly."

JC and Justin exchanged a look; Shelly was nice enough most of the time - often downright sweet to JC even though she seemed to think he had about as much brains as the average marshmallow - but every once in a while she let loose with some scathing remark that made them wonder if she liked them at all.

Joey's eyebrows rose then and he gave Shelly an unreadable look before he turned to Rebecca. "Did I offend you, Rebecca?"

Lance tossed the dry shirt to Joey and frowned at Shelly, knowing how hard Joey had worked to get rid of his pudge and that he definitely did not have anything to be ashamed of anymore. Of course, Lance had never thought he did, but Joey had just smiled when Lance said that and said he was biased and worked it off anyway. Lance had joined him working out just to keep him company but he wound up getting, as Joey had often said, "Buff and sexy as hell." Lance had to admit he liked being in shape now that he was. It was rather nice to be able to pin Joey down if he felt like it, or to grab Chris and _make_ him behave if he had to.

"Shelly, woman, cool it," Justin said then with a frown, distracting Lance from his thoughts. "It was just his shirt, it's not like he stripped or something. Besides, Rebecca's a friend, not some teenybopper."

Rebecca spoke as soon as Justin had finished, giving Shelly a level look as she said dryly, "I'm thirty-four years old, I've seen a man take off a whole lot more than his shirt before, I promise." Rebecca looked at Joey then, who was still standing there looking at her, and said, "It's okay, Joey, you look much better without a shirt than my last boyfriend did. I must say I think Shelly here is seeing things; guys with beer bellies don't have abs like those."

Joe grinned at Rebecca and then pulled on the shirt Lance had given him. The others tried not to laugh when they saw how the shirt looked on Joey, and didn't notice when Chris peeked carefully out of the bathroom wondering if it was safe to come out yet. When Chris saw Joey he laughed out loud though, giving himself away and earning a dirty look from Joey. The thin Abercrombie and Fitch t-shirt Lance had thrown to Joey was very obviously way too small for him, and it was stretched so tight across his chest and shoulders that it left nothing to the imagination.

JC grinned at Joey. "Whatever you do man, don't play around in that thing. You'll pop every seam in my shirt."

"Thanks, I couldn't tell," Joey said sarcastically as he made a face at JC, then looked at Lance. "Scoop, why don't you have one of your shirts in there? I know this thing can't fit you much better than it does me, I wear your clothes all the time."

Lance looked up from stuffing Joey's clothes in the laundry bag, grinning. "Well, Joe, it's usually JC or Justin who doesn't remember to bring an extra t-shirt, so I had one of that fits both of them. I'll put an extra one for you in my bag when we get to our suite, okay?"

Rebecca's eyebrows rose slightly at the 'our suite' part, wondering if that meant what it sounded like. Judging from the way Lance and Joey acted it might, but Joey and Chris had as much as admitted they were together that morning so she wasn't sure.

"Don't bother, Scoop. I'll just put an extra in my bag," Joey said to Lance with a grin, then looked over his shoulder at Chris. "And you can come out Critter, I won't kill you."

Rebecca giggled at that, drawing a slightly wider grin from Joey.

Chris walked out grinning sheepishly, this time carrying his bag and his concert clothes and shoes. "I'm sorry, Joe. I'll be good now."

Joey snorted. "Uh-huh, sure... You'll be good until you get an idea for another prank, and then you'll do something else." Chris opened his mouth to deny that, but Joey cut him off. "Don't even try to say you won't. I've lived with you for almost eight years, Chris, I know you."

Chris stuck his tongue out at Joe and then went to put up his clothes, deciding not to try and argue, mostly because Joey was right.

Shelly cocked her head at Joey, looking a little confused. "I thought you guys had only been together six years?"

Joey looked over at Shelly. "The group has been together six years, yeah, but me and Chris were roommates before that."

Shelly frowned. "But I thought he was in college then, and you were working at Universal."

Rebecca quietly watched, wondering if Joey's slip - and she was sure it was a slip to admit he and Chris had lived together long before the group - was about to cause them problems, and if she could help.

Chris spoke up then, walking over to join the other four after he'd put his things away. "Yeah, that's right. We still shared an apartment, though. Rent in Orlando is way too high for a student working as a DJ to afford an apartment without help. Joey had a steady job and was hardly ever there, so he made a good roomie."

Chris grinned then and Joey nodded as he added, "Plus I didn't kick Chris out because he played Nintendo all night more than half the time. I can sleep through a hurricane - have more than once - so him cussing Zelda at four in the morning didn't bother me. I didn't make a lot, but I could usually scrape up enough to cover the rent if he wasn't working. He always paid me back as soon as he could, and I got into places he was DJing for free most of the time, so it worked out well."

"Orlando is expensive, but nothing like California," JC said then, trying to distract Shelly. "I wasn't there long after high school and had a job the whole time, and I still used most of the money I'd saved from the MMC just to pay rent. Stupidest thing I ever did was going out there to try and break into the music buisness, I should have gone to college or bought studio time instead."

Rebecca's eyebrows went up. "You lived in California?"

JC nodded. "Yeah, I drove my Jeep out there with the usual dreams about making it big and some money I'd saved..." He trailed off, then shrugged and went on, "I was out there getting kicked around for about three months before I couldn't take it anymore and went back home to Orlando. I lived with Justin and his mom until I found a job and a little studio apartment that I could afford." JC gave Rebecca a wry grin. "Justin's mom saved my butt that time. If it weren't for Lynn I would have had to go back to Maryland, and then Joe never would have introduced me and Jup to Chris. I guess you could say 'Nsync exists today because Lynn has a soft spot for me and Justin didn't mind sharing his room with another ex-mouse." JC grinned at Justin, getting a bright grin in return.

Justin wasn't about to say that Lynn had been so willing to let JC live there because she knew Justin was in love with him and hoped that JC really would be part of their family someday. Justin had told his mother that he was having 'weird feelings' for an older guy early in the first season he was on MMC, and Lynn had realized Justin was in love even before Justin did. She'd agonized over it at first but she knew that when Justin set his heart on something he seldom changed his mind so she'd begun doing her best to make JC feel like he would always be welcome in her home.

Lonnie opened the door and looked in then, smiling. "The crowd has thinned out pretty good and the hotel is secure, so we can go whenever you guys are ready."

Shelly jumped up and started towards her makeup bag. "Thank God, I can't wait to get out of here!"

Lance smiled at the bodyguard. "Thanks, Lonnie. We'll be ready in a minute, okay?"

Lonnie nodded and closed the door again as Rebecca stood up and said, "I'll get out of here and let you guys get going. It was great meeting you this morning and seeing the show. I'll be sure to come by next time we're in the same city so we can hang out a bit more. I'll be here a couple more days, but when I get back home I'm going to see what I can do about being assigned to doing the articles with you guys more often."

"Why anyone would ask to hang out with these idiots I have no clue," Shelly grumbled as she put her stuff in her bag, ignoring the dirty looks she got from Joey, Chris, and Justin.

Lance smiled at Rebecca and said, "I'll tell Johnny, our manager, to request you next time J-14 wants us to do an interview, okay? We really enjoyed meeting you today and talking, isn't that right guys?"

The others nodded quickly, grinning and JC said, "Oh yeah, we had a blast! It was nice to talk to someone normal for a change instead of the type J-14 usually makes us talk to."

Shelly laughed and gave JC a funny look as she threw her bag over her shoulder and started towards the door. "JC, honey," she said, "you're sweet as can be but you wouldn't know normal if it bit you on your cute little ass."

Rebecca giggled at the look on JC's face, thinking Shelly wasn't too far off on that one. JC struck her as being someone with his head so high up in the clouds that he didn't even notice most things that other people worried about.

Chris and Lance both grinned, agreeing completely while JC protested, "Hey! I would too! I know normal."

Shelly just snorted and left, muttering to herself.

Rebecca snickered and started towards the door, grinning. "Bye guys. Hope I see you soon."

There was a chorus of goodbyes as she left, then the guys all dug out their own shoes to put them on, talking about the show. Once they all had shoes on Joey, Chris, and JC quickly gathered their things from the dressing room while Justin and Lance went into the lounge to pack up the stuff they'd had in there. Five minutes later they were headed down the hallway with Lonnie, laden with gym bags and backpacks as they discussed what kind of pizza to get.

 

 


	14. Chapter 14

 

 

~~~~14~~~~

 The Expedition that Lonnie led them to behind the venue was one of the silver ones that followed them all over the country. There was an identical one parked beside it for Dre and Scott to ride in, but the third had already gone ahead to the hotel. Lonnie didn't expect any trouble just picking up some dinner and driving to the hotel, so he had let the rest of the security detail leave already.

Lance paused just before they reached the trucks to look at Lonnie and grin as he asked, "Hey Lonnie, can we go solo? Rebecca told me how to find the pizza place."

The other four started begging shamelessly then, grinning, and Lonnie looked at them all a long minute before he finally nodded. "I guess that's okay, but only if you promise not to let the others drive."

Lonnie pulled the keys from the pocket of his windbreaker, but he waited for a reply before he handed them over. Chris had a habit of trying to duck their security just to prove he could, and the guys liked to say Joey used the Force when he drove because he never seemed to look at the road, so Lonnie didn't like either of them driving at night. JC was a careful driver who didn't try to duck security, but he had a tendency to drive much too fast for Lonnie's piece of mind. Justin wasn't careful and also liked to drive fast, which had proven to be a bad combination more than once, so Lance usually was the one who drove when Lonnie had a choice. Lance drove the speed limit and obeyed all the traffic laws, and he was the only one who would slow down to wait for security if they fell behind.

Lance grinned and nodded, reaching for the keys. "I promise."

Lonnie dropped the keys into Lance's outstretched hand, chuckling as the other four ran for the truck, laughing and whooping.

Lance pushed the button to unlock the doors as soon as Lonnie handed him the keys and then headed to the driver's side with a grin. He heard the other three squabbling as he went around the truck but he didn't think anything of it since they always argued over who got to ride shotgun. He opened the driver's door then and leaned in to hand his bag to whoever was in the back seat but stopped, grinning.

Justin was sitting in the back seat on the passenger side laughing as JC, Chris, and Joey all argued over who got to ride in the front, and there was nobody behind Lance's seat to hand his bag to. Lance knew from long experience that Joey wanted the room to stretch out, JC wanted to play with the stereo and Chris wanted to ride up front because he liked to be able to see everything. Justin hardly ever sat in the front because he simply saw no reason to unless he got to drive and Lonnie didn't let him drive often. Several speeding tickets and a couple of minor fender-benders had put him perpetually in the passenger seat.

It was really dark out already which helped Lance decide on an easy way to solve it; he figured Justin and JC should sit together, so JC would get in the back with only a little urging. The rest would take a minute more, but would be worth it because it would be Chris' choice to do exactly what Lance wanted him to.

"Joey? Would you ride in the back with JC and Justin, please?" Lance asked, smiling past Chris at Joey.

Chris crowed and jumped in the front seat as JC shrugged and got in the back without another word while Justin slid over to make room for him with a big grin.

Joey stayed where he was at the passenger door and frowned at Lance as he asked, "Why not let me ride shotgun? At least I won't bug you to death."

"Hey!" Chris exclaimed, laughing. "I don't bug him that much!"

Lance smiled at Joey and said, "I know, Joe, but I can't control Chris if I can't reach him."

Chris looked at Lance then and said, "Hey!" again, this time sounding annoyed. "I'm not five! I can be good without anyone to hold me down."

Lance snorted and said, "Yes, Chris, you _can_ but you probably _won't_ and we both know it. If you sit back there you'll tease JC or start an argument with Justin or both, so just sit in the front with me and play with the stereo, okay?" Lance smiled at him, sure Chris was about to insist on sitting in the back where he'd wanted him to begin with, and he wasn't disappointed when Chris tried to push past Joey to get out.

"Lemme out, Joe, I'm riding in the back," Chris said, frowning at Joey and completely ignoring Lance.

Lance pursed his lips as though he were annoyed but he winked at Joey as soon as Chris looked away.

"Suit yourself." Joey stepped back with a grin to let Chris get out and then Chris climbed into the back while Joey got settled in the front seat. Lance put his backpack in the floor behind where his feet would be and handed his gym bag to Justin for him to toss it in the back, then climbed in and sat down, glancing up to fix the rear view mirror. "Seatbelts, guys."

Lance looked at the three in the back seat and had to stifle a chuckle. Chris had put his seatbelt on and was looking at his door, pouting but determined to prove Lance wrong and behave, while Justin and JC both tried to buckle their seatbelts at the same time and just succeeded in neither getting done. After a moment they sorted it out and looked up, and Lance grinned and started the truck.

 

~*~

 

About an hour later Lance unlocked the door to their suite and opened it, flicking on the light switch with his free hand before he picked his suitcase back up. He shoved the door open with the suitcase and then held it there for Chris to carry in their pizzas and two cases of drinks. Joey was right behind him carrying Chris' suitcase and his own, followed by JC and Justin with their bags.

The room was rather large with a big comfortable-looking L-shaped couch and an overstuffed chair, a nice entertainment center, a small bar with a refridgerator, a table and chairs and several doors that led to the rest of the suite. They didn't have a balcony --mostly Chris hated them -- but otherwise they had a very nice suite that would easily sleep five people.

Lance shut the door as soon as everyone was inside and locked it back before he turned to look around the suite, moving after only a moment to put his backpack on a small table against the wall near the door. Chris had already carried the food over to the coffee table in front of the couch and put it all down, and he was looking around with a grin.

"Wow," Joey said finally, still holding the suitcases. "This place is almost as nice as my house."

"It oughta be, considering what we're paying for one night," Lance said dryly as he walked across to the door nearest him and opened it to look in. "Closet." He moved to the next door and looked in, and when he saw the king-sized bed he grinned and said, "My room. Y'all can fight over the others."

Lance fully expected to be sharing his bed with two other people that night, and he hated crowding Joey while they slept so he wasn't about to settle for the room with twin beds, or even the room with the queen-sized bed. The couch didn't even get a second's consideration, even though he'd figured he would wind up sleeping there when he reserved the room. Lance walked into 'his' room to put down his suitcase, glancing back towards the door when he heard a noise.

Joey and Chris were both standing just inside the door, grinning.

Lance dropped his suitcase and put his hands on his hips to look at them with one eyebrow raised. "And what do you two want?" he asked, his tone amused.

Joey grinned and was about to speak when Chris said, "You!"

Justin laughed out in the other room then, which made Lance grin just a bit as he turned his back on Joey and Chris to pick his suitcase back up to put it on the dresser. "Just so we're clear, I am not sleeping in the middle," he said as he unzipped his bag, "and anyone in my bed tonight had better not give me any crap when they don't get much sleep and still have to get up early." The shower earlier had taken the edge off but Lance and Joey hadn't had much time alone in a couple of weeks, and Lance fully intended to start making up for lost time. He could sleep on the bus.

Joey and Chris exchanged big grins and walked into the room, Chris closing the door behind them with the rather obvious click of a lock.

Justin looked at JC with a grin after the other three were gone and said, "You can pick our room if you want, I don't care where we sleep."

JC smiled back and replied, "Okay." He walked across to one of the doors Lance hadn't checked and opened it, taking a step inside before he backed out again blushing. "Umm... That's the bathroom, so the other two doors ought to be rooms." JC walked quickly to one of the other doors, not even noticing that Justin went to look in the bathroom to see what had made JC turn so red.

Justin grinned when he saw the hot tub that took up almost a fourth of the room, next to a glassed-in shower stall that would easily accommodate three people. Justin wondered how hard it would be to convince JC to get in the hot tub with him. It ought to be easier than getting him into the shower since they'd been in a hot tub together a hundred times before, Justin thought with a wicked grin, the hard part -- so to speak -- would be getting JC naked first.

"Justin?" JC called.

"Yeah, Josh?" Justin asked as he stepped back out of the bathroom to see what JC wanted.

"This one is good," JC said from the doorway of one of the other rooms, grinning at him a little even though his blush hadn't quite faded.

Justin walked over to join him at the door, stifling a laugh when JC just stood there holding his suitcase and watching him with a little grin. "Josh? You okay?"

JC blushed again and nodded, then turned and went into the room. He immediately went to put his suitcase on the luggage rack at the foot of the bed, and Justin followed him in to go put his suitcase on the dresser. Justin heard a soft click just after he put his suitcase down he turned to look towards the sound, his eyebrows going up.

JC was leaning back against the door with that same little grin, one hand still on the knob. "I like cold pizza, don't you?" JC pushed away from the door then and walked towards Justin, his eyes bright with mischief and something more. JC knew Justin would go for just about anything he might suggest, which was giving him all sorts of ideas now that they were behind a locked door.

Justin still looked surprised but he grinned and moved to meet JC halfway, reaching to pull him in close. "Oh yeah," Justin said, "I love cold pizza."

JC kissed Justin without another word, smiling into the kiss when he felt Justin's hands touch his back and then slide down the to hem of his shirt to ease it up slowly, almost as though he though JC might object. Justin slid his hands under JC's shirt and stroked his back as they kissed, pulling away after several minutes to slowly pull JC's shirt off and then quickly jerk his own shirt over his head and toss it aside too before he moved into JC's arms again. They continued kissing for several minutes, hands slowly roaming over each other's bodies as they explored, neither wanting to hurry things along now that they were finally alone.

JC pulled away a little while later to smile at Justin. "I've waited so long for this."

JC didn't wait for Justin to reply before he leaned in to kiss him again, lingering for a few moments before he began to trail kisses from Justin's lips along his jaw. Justin tilted his head slightly to give JC easier access, and the soft puff of JC's breath against the delicate skin behind Justin's ear a moment later made the younger man shiver. JC slowly kissed his way down Justin's neck to his collarbone and then lower, licking and nibbling as he savored the taste of Justin's skin. Justin's hands flexed against JC's back when JC licked lightly at one nipple, and when JC began to play with it with his teeth and tongue, Justin groaned.

"God, Josh," Justin murmured, his voice low and rough, "I had no idea that would feel so good."

JC lifted his head to look into Justin's dark eyes, smiling. "You like that, huh?"

Justin let out a short, breathy laugh. "You could say that."

JC grinned wickedly and leaned closer until their lips almost met before he whispered softly, "Baby, I know all sorts of things that will feel even better."

Justin's eyes widened a bit then as JC's hands slid around to cup his ass and pull him closer, but JC just kept grinning at him, waiting for Justin to say something. "Who are you and what did you do with my Josh?" Justin asked finally with a little grin as he slid his own hands down JC's back to slip his fingers inside the waistband of JC's sweats, wondering how he would react.

JC grinned back at him and moved closer so that his body was pressed against Justin's. "I'm right here, baby. I just finally don't have to ignore all the things about the man I love that make me want to throw him down and have my wicked way with him. And I seem to recall agreeing we would do whatever you wanted tonight, so... What do you want to do?"

"You having your wicked way with me sounds like fun," Justin said with a grin, still a bit wide-eyed at the way JC had suddenly taken control. JC was usually only aggressive in the studio or on stage, and had a well-deserved reputation for being the quiet one of the group the rest of the time. After all the blushing JC had been doing just over kissing or talking about sex Justin had fully expected to have to beg to get JC to make love to him. Justin really liked this new side he was seeing of JC though, and he wanted to see lots more of it in the very near future, preferrably naked.

Getting naked sounded really good to Justin right then so he pulled away from JC and walked over by the bed to kick out of his shoes and socks. "You won't have to throw me down though, I'll go very willingly." Justin grinned at JC and was about to take off his sweats when JC closed the distance between them, reaching for him.

"Let me, baby. I've wanted to do this for a long time." JC smiled as his hands began to roam over Justin's sides and he leaned forward to nuzzle by his ear again. JC kicked out of his loafers then and began to kiss and nibble his way down Justin's throat on the opposite side from where he'd started before, his hands moving to slowly stroke Justin's back.

Justin shivered and slid his arms around JC as he murmured, "So have I, more than anything. I've dreamed about you for years, and driven Brit nuts talking about you."

JC lifted his head and pulled back enough to look at Justin, suddenly serious. "How does Brit really feel about us? I mean, I know she loves you, Justin. I can't say that I'd stay away from you if she asked -- I couldn't, not now -- but I'd like to know how she's going to take it."

Justin smiled and lifted a hand to stroke JC's cheek. "She loves you and the other guys as much as she does me, Josh. I've just hung out with her more, so I'm a little closer to her than you guys are. Brit has known I was in love with you since before I did, she's the one who helped me accept it and get up the courage to tell my mom. She'd never want us to stay apart baby, she's more likely to steal our clothes and lock us up together for a week or two."

Justin leaned forward to kiss JC again then, moaning softly when JC deepened the kiss immediately to begin exploring Justin's mouth with his tongue. JC took a slow step forward after they'd been kissing for a few minutes, his hands roaming down Justin's back to massage his ass for a moment before he nudged Justin backwards until his legs were against the bed. JC guided him back onto the bed without any hesitation, giving Justin a wicked little grin as he followed him down.

Justin trembled under JC's hands and mouth as JC began to seriously explore Justin's body, arcing upward into JC's touch and trying to reach him with his own hands to reciprocate in some way. "Josh," Justin said softly a moment later, gasping as JC nibbled gently at one of his nipples, "that feels so good. I should--"

JC lifted his head to look at Justin as he interrupted him. "Hush, baby," he said softly, moving up to kiss Justin before he went on. "Just lie back and enjoy, this time is all about you." JC kissed him again and moved off of Justin to kneel next to him on the bed as his fingers slipped into the waistband of Justin's sweats and he began to slide them down Justin's legs, smiling.

 

 ~*~

 

Lance heard Chris lock the door when he closed it. He carefully composed his expression and turned back around to face them, leaning against the dresser as he watched Joey carry the suitcases over to drop them by the other side of the bed.

Joey walked back around the bed to stand next to Chris near the door, giving Lance a slow once-over before he looked at Chris, who grinned at him. Joey tipped his head slightly towards Chris and got an enthusiastic nod just before they both turned and started towards Lance. "Did I see a microwave out there?" Joey asked Lance, pulling off the tight t-shirt and tossing it aside.

Lance shrugged. "I didn't look. Why?" he asked, pretending he didn't know exactly what Joey had in mind.

Chris smirked wickedly. "So we can re-heat our pizza, of course. It's gonna be cold by the time we unlock that door."

Lance folded his arms across his chest and raised an eyebrow at them, trying to look stern. "Oh it will, huh? Why is that?"

Joey and Chris moved so that the two of them had Lance boxed in against the dresser before either of them answered. "Because," Joey said, grinning, "it's my turn."

"Yeah, and then mine," Chris added, nodding.

Lance wanted to grin at that, and he barely succeeded in keeping a straight face as he asked, "Your turn to do what, Joe?"

Joey stepped even closer to Lance with a wicked grin. "You."

Lance cocked his head sideways a bit to look at Joey, finally unable to keep from grinning. "Sounds nice -- it's been way too long -- but I thought you two wanted to try out that hot tub? We can't do that locked in here, and won't have time in the morning. Up to y'all though, I'm gonna have fun tonight either way."

Joey and Chris exchanged another look, then both grinned. "Hot tub now," Chris said, "then we'll eat and come back in here to do it right."

Lance laughed. "And when are we gonna sleep?"

Joey grinned at Lance and then turned to walk over to the door while Chris nudged Lance to follow him. "On the bus," Joey said, grinning over his shoulder at Lance as he reached to open the door.

"Yeah," Chris said, pushing Lance along towards the door. "We're not allowed to do anything sexy on the bus, we might as well sleep there."

"Okay, you convinced me." Lance caught up to Joey at the door and breezed past him, grinning, to go figure out which room was the bathroom.

Joey and Chris exchanged grins and then followed him over to the door Lance checked first, the one Justin had left open only a few minutes before.

Lance turned on the lights and looked around. "Wow, I'm impressed. Maybe this suite _is_ worth what we paid." He walked over to the hot tub and turned on the water to start it filling while they undressed, then heard an 'oof' noise and turned to look at the other two.

Lance chuckled when he saw that Joey already had his sweatpants and boxers around his knees and Chris had shoved him back against the door, holding him there with both hands on Joey's chest as he looked him up and down with a leer.

"Critter, what are you doing?" Joey asked, amused.

Chris grinned up at Joey and slid his hands down Joey's body as he stepped closer. "That hot tub will take forever to fill up, but I can play with you right now."

Lance chuckled and took off his t-shirt. "He has a point, Joe."

Joey grinned at Chris and leaned back a bit more firmly against the door. "What did you have in mind?"

Chris just grinned wickedly and leaned in to nip at Joey's collarbone before he started to lick and nibble a trail down Joey's chest. Joey lifted his hands to grab Chris' shirt and pull it up, grinning when Chris made an annoyed noise as the material bunched up under his chin. Chris ducked out of the t-shirt and then leaned in close to continue exploring Joey's body with his mouth as one hand roamed down Joey's thigh and the other slid around to cup his ass.

Lance walked over as soon as he'd kicked free of his jeans and underwear, smiling at Joe as he rested one hand on Chris' shoulder. He leaned against Chris' back as he said quietly to Joey, "That tub will take a while to fill, and this door locks too..."

Joey grinned as he leaned forward to kiss Lance and then let out a low groan as Chris slid down to kneel between them. Lance reached for the doorknob and stepped sideways to stand next to Chris a moment later, the click of the lock clearly audible over the sound of running water even though they weren't really listening anymore.

 

 


	15. Chapter 15

 

~~~~15~~~~

 

Justin had been sure for years that sex with JC would be great, but after it had actually happened he realized that he had really had no clue what it would be like. JC had thoroughly blown Justin's mind, among other things, and then Justin's evening had gotten really interesting.

When JC finally lifted his head off Justin's chest to see why he was so quiet thirty minutes later, Justin was still flat on his back on their very rumpled bed, stroking JC's sweaty back with one hand and giving the ceiling a rather goofy grin. JC stifled a laugh, his expression bordering on a smirk as he asked, "Baby? You awake in there?"

Justin blinked quickly and then put his free arm behind his head to prop it up to look at JC, still grinning like a loon. "Yeah, Josh. Why?"

JC smirked at Justin and then rolled away to sit up. "I dunno about you, baby, but I'm hungry. How does pizza sound?"

Justin sat up too, moving quickly after JC and leaning in to kiss his shoulder before he said, "Pizza sounds great, I'm starving!"

JC laughed and pulled away from Justin to stand and go pick up his sweatpants, the rustle and light thud behind him giving him enough warning that he wasn't surprised when he felt Justin's long arms wrap around him from behind. JC grinned and leaned back against him, leaning sideways and turning to look at Justin. "Did you want something?"

Justin grinned back at him and rubbed his hips against JC's ass. "Besides you?"

JC laughed. "Yes, besides me. I'm off the menu until I've had some pizza and a drink."

Justin gave JC a pouty look that was completely spoiled by the mischief in his eyes. "But you said we'd do anything I want tonight and we haven't even gotten started good yet."

JC laughed and turned in Justin's arms, the hand holding his sweats moving up so that arm was draped over Justin's shoulder. "Are you trying to say you didn't enjoy what we already did? I seem to recall differently..."

Justin returned the grin and tightened his grip on JC a bit. "Well, yeah, that was amazing, you can do that whenever you want. Like, every day. Twice."

JC laughed again and leaned forward to kiss Justin quickly before he tried to pull away. "Lemme go, baby. I'm starving and if we stay in here too long, Joey and Chris'll eat our pizza, too."

"Oh, all right," Justin said as he let go, "but I get to pick what we do after that, you promised." He grinned at JC and turned to go get his own sweats from the floor on the other side of the bed, completely missing how JC watched him as he walked across the room.

"I know I did, baby," JC said with a rather smug grin, watching as Justin bent over to pick up his pants. "Just lemme eat and then I'm yours until wake-up call." JC stepped quickly into his pants and pulled them up while he spoke, then started looking for his shirt.

Justin glanced over as he stepped into his own sweats, and he noticed JC looking around. "What are you looking for?"

JC walked over to stand closer to the door, trying to look under the bed. "My t-shirt. I was standing over here when you tossed it."

Justin laughed and walked over to stand near JC. "You don't need it, it's just the guys."

JC turned his head to grin at Justin as he started to move towards the door. "I guess you're right."

Justin followed him, taking advantage of JC's pause to unlock the door to wrap his arms around him again, kissing the back of JC's neck. When JC opened the door and started out of it Justin didn't let go, instead walking along behind him and making JC giggle and squirm at the way Justin was licking his neck as they moved.

Lance was taking a drink when he looked up at JC's giggle and saw them, and he had to swallow quickly to keep from spraying Dr. Pepper everywhere as he laughed.

Joey gave them a big grin and raised part of a slice of pizza towards them in mock salute. "Chow's on."

Chris lifted up from his position in the floor to see what Lance and Joey were looking at, grinning when he saw JC and Justin. "Whoa, Infant! You look like you've been well and truly fucked."

JC turned red at that but Justin just grinned back at Chris and said, "Oh yeah. I told you we didn't need your help, old man."

JC elbowed Justin and looked over his shoulder at him. "Justin!"

Justin just grinned unrepentantly. "What, you want me to lie to him and say you didn't?"

JC made a face. "No, I don't want you to lie, but you don't have to tell him, either."

Lance laughed. "It's pretty obvious, Josh. His expression is practically screaming 'I just got laid really good'."

"That's only 'cause I did," Justin said with a grin, then immediately ducked his head to nuzzle just below JC's ear, trying to distract JC from whatever he'd been about to say.

JC instinctively leaned his head back and to the side a bit to give Justin better access, closing his eyes for a moment with a little smile as the other three watched them. "Still, Justin," JC said when he recovered his train of thought after a minute or two, "don't answer those kind of questions or Chris'll never stop asking."

Joey chuckled. "He ain't gonna stop asking anyway, C. He's having too much fun making you blush. Do you two want any pizza? We saved one for you, but if you're not hungry I'm sure I can figure out what to do with it."

JC pulled away from Justin a bit at that, chuckling as he tried to pry Justin's arms off his stomach. Justin held on stubbornly, and after a moment JC looked over his shoulder to see that Justin was pouting. JC gave him the sweet, crinkly-eyed grin that he knew Justin couldn't resist. "C'mon, baby," he said, "we can do whatever you want later but pizza first, remember?"

Justin pouted some more. "Promise? Anything?"

JC snorted and tried to pull away again, smiling. "Baby, I love you like I love breathing, but I'm not falling for that twice in one day."

Lance and Chris both laughed while Joey grinned and said, "You'll have to try again tomorrow, Jup."

"Hey man, it was worth a shot," Justin said with a grin for Joey, then smirked at JC. "And I love you, too." He kissed JC's shoulder again and then let him go so JC could go over to the couch. "You guys better have left us the pizza without olives!"

Lance chuckled and pointed at the box still on the bar. "There it is, Curly, see for yourself. There's a microwave and some plates under the counter if you want it hot."

Justin crossed over to the bar as JC flopped down on the opposite end of the couch from Joey and Lance, both of them missing the look odd Chris gave Justin as he flipped open the pizza box and grinned.

"Mmm, pepperoni with extra cheese and mushrooms, just how I like it!" Justin looked over at JC and asked, "Babe, you want yours hot or cold?"

JC turned his head to grin at Justin. "Cold is fine, baby."

Justin leaned behind the counter to get a plate, then put three slices on it and went to give the plate to JC, leaning to kiss him lightly as he handed over the plate. "There you go." Justin grinned impishly at JC before he turned away to walk back to the bar, hopping up to sit on it and then immediately picking up a slice of pizza.

Chris was still giving Justin a funny look, watching him and looking just a little confused. Lance and Joey glanced at each other, both thinking Chris was about to say something stupid and wondering what it would be until Chris suddenly said, "Justin, I thought you said JC did you."

JC choked on his pizza and stared wide-eyed at Chris, his face flaming as he spluttered, "Chris!"

Justin finished chewing and swallowed his first mouthful of pizza, watching Chris with a curious expression. "Yeah... Why?"

Chris gave Justin a skeptical look. "And you aren't at all sore?"

Justin blinked, confused. "Not really, no. Am I supposed to be?"

JC glared at Chris, looking pretty pissed. "Are you trying to ask Justin if I hurt him?!"

Chris was completely taken aback by that. "Oh Josh, no. I know you'd never hurt the kid! It's just, well..." He trailed off, looking from JC to Justin and back again before he shrugged and went on, "I'm surprised Justin doesn't seem uncomfortable, that's all. I was pretty sore after my first time, and Howie knew what he was doing."

JC snorted and said just a little sharply, "Evidently he didn't." He gave Chris a hard look, adding, "I may not get laid as often as you, Chris, but I do know what I'm doing, and you can bet your hairy ass I was careful. I would do just about anything for Justin -- I love him more than I could ever put into words -- but that doesn't include hurting him, not even if he wanted me to."

Justin smiled and said quietly, "Babe, I'd never ask you to. I know you couldn't."

JC turned his head to smile back at Justin and then looked back over at Chris, waiting for him to say something.

Chris looked sheepishly at JC and said, "I'm sorry, Josh. That came out all wrong, I know you'd never hurt him. Why don't we agree I'm a nosy idiot and leave it at that?"

Joey laughed. "We've known that for years, Critter. You don't need to tell us."

Chris just stuck his tongue out at Joey instead of replying, mostly because he couldn't really argue with that. JC grinned and went back to eating his pizza, content to let the whole subject drop.

Lance and Joey soon started back into their previous discussion about which of them had more signs at that night's concert while JC and Justin ate their pizza and Chris made rude comments about Lance and Joe's egos.

Justin hopped down off the counter a little while later and started around behind it to look in the fridge. "Josh? You want a drink?"

JC turned his head to look at Justin with a grin, swallowing a mouthful of pizza. "Yeah, baby, thanks," he answered, then looked back over at the others as Joey said, "But there was only one sign asking you to drop your pants Scoop, I had three!"

Justin looked in the little refrigerator and then walked over towards the couch. "Where'd you guys put the case of Mountain Dew?"

Lance glanced over at Justin. "Chris had it. " He looked at Joey again, adding, "But only one girl wanted you to marry her."

Justin looked expectantly at Chris, ignoring Joey's reply as Chris grinned and settled a bit more firmly against the cushion he'd stolen out of the chair. "Well?" Justin asked impatiently after a minute, "Where did you put it?"

"I didn't put it anywhere, Infant," Chris said, then lifted a can of Mountain Dew from the floor beside him and drained it.

Justin walked around the couch to stand over Chris, his eyes narrowing. "Okay, you didn't put it anywhere. Where is it?"

Chris grinned up at him and shook his head. "I ain't telling, you two'll drink them all and then I won't have any for breakfast."

Justin snorted and said, "Give up the Dew, dwarf."

"You overgrown-- I am not a dwarf!" Chris sat up abruptly, indignant, and the cushion he'd been leaning against fell to one side, uncovering the bright green Mountain Dew box.

Justin quickly bent to grab the box, fending off Chris' attempt to stop him as he grinned and said, "I'll put two in the fridge for you, old man. I know you need your caffeine in the morning."

Lance snorted. "Chris needs caffeine like Josh needs more Sting CDs."

Joey chuckled while Chris and JC both said, "Hey!" at the same time, then looked at each other and called, "Jinx!" in unison, making the others laugh.

Justin handed JC a can and carried the case over to put a few cans in the little fridge before he put the box on the bar and hopped up to sit next to it and open a can. "Chris, dude, why Howie?" Justin asked after he'd taken a drink, then picked up another slice of pizza and took a bite as he waited for an answer.

Chris looked at Justin, confused. "Huh? Why Howie what?"

Justin rolled his eyes and swallowed. "You said Howie was your first. Why him? I just can't picture you two together, he's just too..." He trailed off a moment then shrugged and said, "Howie."

"Oh!" Chris said, laughing. "Well, Howie was my roomie back when I was living in the dorm, in college. We weren't nearly as close as I am to you guys, but we were pretty good friends. I knew he was gay from day one -- I think Howie was born flaming, Lou had a hell of a time getting him to tone it down -- and it never bothered me. I was sort of leaning towards being bi myself then, and I noticed guys sometimes that I'd have liked to get closer to, but I had never done anything about it until Howie hit on me one night after I did a party. I took him up on the offer 'cause I was bored and curious and I hadn't gotten laid in a while."

Joey laughed as Chris went on with a grin, "We screwed around for a few months after that, mostly because he's a nympho and I enjoyed getting some action regularly for a change. Howie's a good guy and we got along okay. He never complained about me coming in from parties at three am or any of the other stuff my girlfriends had hated, but neither of us was looking to stay together. We stopped having sex when I got my apartment because we just didn't see each other very often anymore, and not long after that Howie started working on putting BSB together. Lou made him go in the closet about the time I met Joe," Chris gave Joey a grin and finished, "and after that Howie didn't really cross my mind much anymore."

Lance chuckled. "If anyone had told me one of the Backstreet Boys was your first guy I would have guessed AJ. You two hung out together a lot in Europe."

Chris snorted. "AJ just wanted somebody to listen to him talk about Howie. Brian, Nick, and Kevin didn't want to hear it by the time we got over there, and Howie was still blissfully ignorant of the fact AJ was carrying a major torch for him. I wouldn't have gotten dragged into it if Howie hadn't gotten drunk one night when he and AJ had to share a room and AJ found out that if you get Howie drunk he'll answer any question. To make a long story short he told AJ that he and I had been lovers and AJ decided I was elected to give him advice on 'catching' Howie. I kept telling him Howie never ran from me so I had no clue how to catch him, but he still bugged me every time we saw them, wanting to know everything I could remember about what Howie liked. Eventually he got desperate enough to just flat out ask Howie if he wanted to fuck him, and they've been together ever since as far as I know." Chris looked over at Joey. "Aren't they? You talk to him more often than I do."

Joey nodded. "Yeah, they are. AJ called me to fuss about a week ago because Howie had a kanji tattooed on his ass but he won't tell AJ what it means."

The others laughed as Chris said, "You're kidding! Howie the girlyman got a tattoo?"

Joey shook his head and grinned. "Nope, no joke. AJ was having a fit about it, asking me if I could tell him what it meant if he drew it for me or if I knew somebody who could. I told him to ask whoever did Howie's tatt, and he said 'great idea, thanks man' and hung up on me." Joey chuckled.

Chris looked thoughtful a minute then grinned. "I bet it's something stupid like 'curiosity', or maybe 'tease'. Howie's got a twisted sense of humor."

"No wonder you two got along," Lance said, grinning as he quickly got up and dodged behind the couch.

Chris scrambled to his feet. "That is it, Bass! I'm gonna kick your ass!" Chris exclaimed, heading straight for Lance even though that would mean climbing over the couch.

Lance laughed and moved farther back, grinning wickedly. "Kiss my ass, maybe. You couldn't kick it if you tried."

Chris made and annoyed noise and jumped on the couch to head for Lance but he didn't even take one step before Joey laughed and pulled him down across his lap. "Cool it, Critter. You ain't gonna kick that ass, I like it just like it is." Chris gave him a dirty look and tried to squirm loose, but Joey just grinned and held on. "I'll hold him down so you can lick it if you want, but no kicking the Bass booty, okay?"

Chris thought about that for a couple of seconds and then grinned and relaxed. "Deal."

JC lifted his drink to finish it, trying to pretend he hadn't heard the last part, but Justin just had to ask. "Dude, you'd lick his ass?"

Chris looked at JC and grinned wickedly as JC turned red. "You didn't rim him, Josh?"

JC didn't answer as he leaned forward to put his empty can on the coffee table, but Justin grinned and said, "If you mean did he lick my ass, the answer is no, but the night's not over yet. Maybe I'll get lucky after we get through with the hot tub."

Joey, Lance, and Chris started laughing as JC turned to look at Justin, his eyes widening. "We are not having sex in that hot tub!"

Justin gave JC his best innocent look. "I didn't say anything about sex in the hot tub, sweetheart, but now that you mention it that does sound like fun. You did promise you'd do anything I wanted after you ate some pizza and had a drink, and you've done both."

JC made a noise somewhere between a laugh and a groan, trying to figure out a way out of the situation he'd managed to talk himself into -- again! -- as the other three laughed. JC didn't talk nearly so much as the others but he still managed somehow to get himself into conversations he'd rather have avoided, and once in them he always wound up on the short end of the stick, wondering how he'd gotten there.

Lance spoke up after a moment, grinning wickedly at JC. "It's not like sex in the hot tub is such a bad thing, C. I'm uniquely qualified to promise you it's even better than sex the shower, though a couch or a bed is still my first choice just because it's so versatile."

JC gave Lance a withering look. "Lance, giving him ideas is not helping."

Justin laughed. "Josh, sweetheart, you don't need to worry about him giving me ideas. I have plenty of my own to keep us busy for the next six months or so."

JC gave Justin an exasperated look, then suddenly grinned. "You'll only try them out with me though."

"Of course!" Justin smirked. "I've waited this long because I wanted it to be you, why would that change now that I've finally got what I wanted?"

Chris chuckled and moved to sit in the floor and stretch out again. "Justin, be honest... Were you really the only twenty year old virgin in the music business until tonight?"

Justin stuck his tongue out at Chris and then grinned as he opened another can of Mountain Dew. "That depends on what counts as losing your virginity."

JC raised an eyebrow and looked at Justin in surprise, wondering why Justin needed to qualify it, but Chris just snorted. "Actual sex and blow jobs count, but everything else is just playing around."

"Hmm... " Justin looked thoughtful for a moment as he took a long drink, then he finally asked, "Does chatroom sex count, if you came?"

Chris laughed and shook his head as JC exclaimed, "Justin! Tell me you didn't."

Justin looked at JC, his blue eyes wide and innocent. "Didn't what, Josh?"

JC snorted then, not believing the innocent look for an instant. "Tell me you did not get online and have sex with a stranger."

"I did not get online and have sex with a stranger," Justin repeated dutifully, then he grinned wickedly. "I got online and had sex with somebody I knew." Justin paused again to let that sink in a bit, then added, "It's all your fault, Josh. I had to try it if you thought it was great enough to write a song about it."

Lance laughed at JC's expression and said, "Justin, who did you get to cyber with you? Not a fan I hope?"

Justin grinned wickedly at them from his seat on the counter. "No, definitely not a fan, it was one of the Boys. He knew that it was one of us, but I'm pretty sure he thought I was Josh."

JC looked shocked and made a funny little noise, staring at Justin like he'd just said the sky was green. With pink polkadots. And orange clouds.

Chris looked over at Lance with a sudden grin, sure they'd all know pretty soon. "Okay, Scoop, you talk to everyone. Which of the Boys can run a computer well enough to get in a chat room?"

"Well," Lance said, "I know Howie's almost as good with computers as I am, and Nick and Brian both can run one pretty well. I don't think AJ or Kevin ever messes with more than email though, or video games."

"Was it Nick?" Joey asked with a grin, but Justin just smiled and didn't answer.

"So it was Brian?" Chris asked, "I know Howie's not into cybering, he's kinky but not that way."

Justin made a face and was about to say something when JC spoke suddenly, looking quite confident. "You're both wrong, or both right; it was Nick _and_ Brian."

JC was sure he was right, but wasn't about to admit that was because he'd run into them in chatrooms quite a few times himself, not after trying for over two years to convince the others that Digital Getdown wasn't autobiographical. It hadn't been at the time, really, but after he wrote the song he got curious, and damn but the nights were long when you were in a strange hotel and couldn't sleep. One thing led to another and before long he'd met Nick and Brian in a private chatroom and couldn't really deny he'd cybered anymore. The fact Justin had also had cybersex with them, and while they thought he was JC, explained some comments they'd made when they really were talking to JC. Evidently Justin had a pretty good imagination and was completely shameless.

Justin's eyes went wide and he said, "How did--" Justin shut his mouth quickly and gave JC a dirty look. "It's not fair, I should be able to read your mind, too."

The other three laughed but JC just smirked at Justin, looking smug. "Baby, you're an open book to me."

Justin snorted and hopped down off the counter to walk over to stand in front of where JC was on the couch. "Oh, yeah, sure I am. That's why I was in love with you for _eight years_ and you didn't know it until _Brit_ told you."

JC stuck his tongue out and Justin moved onto the couch to kneel over JC's lap and kiss him, sucking at JC's tongue even as his hands slid up into JC's hair. JC was surprised at first but after a moment his arms went around Justin and his hands slid down Justin's back, urging him closer.

Lance and Chris exchanged almost identical surprised looks before they quickly looked back over at the two on the other end of the couch, just in time to see Justin move his knees further apart so he could get closer to JC.

"Wow," Chris said softly a few minutes later as JC's hand slid inside Justin's sweat pants, pushing them down enough that a goodly bit of untanned skin was visible as Justin's hips began move against JC slowly. Chris looked over at Joey and Lance and grinned when he saw them watching the other two, then looked back at JC and Justin and said teasingly, "I thought you were the shy one, C."

JC kept kissing Justin for a moment longer as the younger man moved against him, then broke the kiss with a gasp only to kiss Justin again when Justin made a soft noise in protest. JC finally pulled away again and looked up into Justin's eyes for a long moment with a sweet smile before he looked over at Chris with a sudden bright, almost innocent grin. "Did you say something?" He slid his hand up out of Justin's pants and then pulled them up as Justin bent his head to start nuzzling behind JC's ear.

Chris snorted. "Yeah, I did. What happened to the JC who was embarassed every time Justin kissed him in front of us?"

JC didn't know how to answer that, but he didn't have to because Justin lifted his head then to look at Chris and grin wickedly. "He got laid."

JC laughed and swatted Justin's ass lightly. "Behave, you," he said with a grin for Justin, then looked over at Chris. "You guys said you didn't mind, but we can go to our room if you'd like..."

Chris shook his head and was about to answer when Justin said, "No Josh, to the bathroom. I was serious about the hot tub."

JC looked at Justin for a few moments, and his eyes sparkled with mischief as he finally said, "Okay, but it'll take forever to fill. What are we gonna do while we wait?"

Justin lightly flexed his hips then, making JC move slightly in response even though he tried not to. "I'm sure we can think of something," Justin said with a wicked grin.

Lance chuckled. "Maybe we ought to re-think that new bus rule after all. With JC getting over being so shy, we're all gonna have trouble following it."

Joey and Chris grinned at each other and then Chris jumped up off the floor as he exclaimed, "Vote! All in favor of sex on the bus kiss somebody right now!"

It was unanimous.

 

 


	16. Chapter 16

 

 

~~~~ 16 ~~~~

 

Once they got started kissing, they were all perfectly content to keep going. Quite a while passed before Lance finally squirmed away from Chris and Joey, grinning as he pushed Chris the rest of the way onto Joey's lap so he could get up. Once on his feet he intended to go to the bathroom, but instead he paused to look at JC and Justin in surprise, his eyes widening a bit.

Justin's pants had slipped again so that he was only a few inches from mooning the room. One of JC's hands was hidden completely inside Justin's sweats, and the other was urging Justin closer as the two of them made very serious attempts to devour each other, tongue first.

Lance shook his head and grinned after a moment, then looked at the other two to see that Chris was draped comfortably across Joey's lap now with his arms around Joey's neck, both of them grinning as they watched JC and Justin. "I have to use the bathroom," Lance said as he finally started across the room, "and then I'm going to bed. I'd advise you two to use the bathroom before JC and Justin get in there; judging by the way they're going now they'll be a while once they're behind a door that locks." Lance went in the bathroom then and closed the door without waiting for a reply.

Chris and Joey watched JC and Justin for another minute or two before Chris asked, "Is JC really doing what I think he's doing, or am I just a dirty old man?"

Joey snorted and glanced at Chris, then looked back at the other couple. "You're definitely a dirty old man, Critter, but I must be too 'cause it looks like he's--"

JC's voice was a bit ragged but sounded amused when he pulled away from Justin and interrupted Joey. "Joe, you're sitting on a couch half naked and with the man you love in your lap. Why are you watching us?"

Joey and Chris just stared in surprise at JC, who grinned at them and looked like he was going to say something else until he was distracted by Justin.

Justin moved his hips again, leaning in to nuzzle the hair behind JC's ear as he whispered something too quietly for the others to hear.

JC closed his eyes as he answered softly, "In a few minutes, baby, I promise." He slid his right hand up from Justin's lower back to his neck and guided his head to kiss him while Justin moved his hips against JC rather insistently. They kissed for several minutes before Justin made a soft, hungry noise and broke the kiss to whisper in JC's ear again. JC blushed and said softly, "Baby, no, not here."

One of Justin's hands disappeared between their bodies then, making JC gasp as Justin said softly, "But I want to," and kissed him again.

Joey and Chris glanced at each other, both surprised; that had sounded like a pretty definite 'no' to both of them, and Justin wasn't showing any sign of backing down.

JC shuddered and his hips lifted towards Justin's even as he moved both hands to Justin's chest and pushed him back to break the kiss so he could look into Justin's intense dark blue eyes. "Justin, stop," he said firmly, "I said no, baby, and I meant it."

Lance opened the bathroom door in time to hear that and stopped, not wanting to interrupt. Justin knew JC would do anything for him and took advantage of it all the time - to be fair, Lance didn't think he even realized he was doing it - but JC was actually telling him no and meaning it this time. Lance felt like Justin needed to hear that every once in a while, especially from JC.

Justin stopped what he'd been doing and looked at JC for a long moment, his expression showing that he was upset, but the others couldn't see that it was at himself. JC was trying so hard to do everything Justin wanted to and he still kept asking for more without thinking, even though he already had more than he'd dared hope for just a few days ago. "I know," he said after a moment, "it's just that I want you so badly..." He trailed off, thinking about how much JC hated to have to tell him no, and then said more softly, "I'm sorry, I'll be good." He stood and pulled his sweats up as he walked over to the bar to take a drink from the can he'd left there, keeping his back to the couch because he knew his sweat pants made his arousal quite obvious. He was mentally kicking himself for pushing JC too far - again - and wondering what he could do to make it up to him.

JC watched Justin stand there with his back to them for a long moment with his brow furrowed, opening his mouth to say something twice but closing it when he realized he didn't know what to say or how to say it. He knew that Justin had spent years waiting for the chance to prove just how much he wanted JC, how much he loved him, and that he wanted nothing more than to be with JC any way he could.

JC suddenly felt like a pricktease for letting it go so far and then saying no, especially since he'd started it and had been encouraging Justin. He stood and walked over to put his arms around Justin from behind, kissing his neck before he spoke quietly, his voice making it plain he was upset too. "Baby, it was my fault, I'm the one who should be sorry. I knew better, but it's hard not to take advantage of you. I'm sorry," JC repeated, then kissed Justin's shoulder.

Justin turned in his grasp then and wrapped his arms around JC. "Josh, sweetheart, don't. I wanted you to, it wasn't your fault. We just love each other too m--"

"No," Lance interrupted firmly as he started across the room towards them. "Don't even try to finish that sentence, Justin. It's not true; you can't love each other too much." Neither of them was especially good at saying what they meant and both of them had a bad habit of taking chance remarks the other one made as gospel truth, so Lance felt like he should stop them before one of them said something that could come back and haunt them later.

Lance stopped next to the two of them and spoke again, smiling slightly. "You're in love and you want each other, it's nothing to be ashamed of. Please don't try to deny it, not when you're safe with us. We're going to be spending enough time in public where you'll have to remember not to kiss or touch too much, so don't try and hide it when it's just us, too. If you feel like kissing then do it right and kiss each other breathless, and if the urge comes over you to make love we'll either leave you alone or pretend we don't enjoy watching you." Lance grinned as he said that, then continued, "I know I can speak for Joe and Chris when I say we want you to be together, okay?"

JC looked into Justin's eyes silently for a long moment and then looked at Lance. "Are you sure?" He turned in Justin's arms to look at Joey and Chris on the couch. "All three of you? I don't want you to feel like you have to put up with us acting like sex-starved teenagers. It's not a lot for you to ask that we keep it behind closed doors."

Chris stood and walked over to stand near Lance with Joey moving to follow him after a moment. "Josh," Chris said, smiling, "we are behind closed doors. Does it upset you to see the three of us kissing and stuff, knowing that we'll probably do more in front of you?"

JC looked confused. "Why would it upset me?" JC asked. "You three are in love."

Justin smiled and gave JC a squeeze, sure he would realize what he'd said in a moment.

Joey smiled at JC as he wrapped an arm around Chris' shoulders and slipped the other around Lance's waist. "Then why do think we'll be upset by seeing you two together?" Joey asked. "Josh, if anyone could possibly know how much you two love each other, it's us. You're so close you finish each other's thoughts, for Pete's sake. You've acted happier the last twenty-four hours than I've seen you in a year, and the more comfortable you get with having Justin, the happier you seem to get."

Lance nodded, smiling at JC. "It's great to see you happy again, Josh."

JC looked at them for a long moment, then gave them a sheepish grin and turned his head to look at Justin. "I've been an idiot, haven't I?"

Justin tightened his arms around JC and shook his head, smiling. "No babe, you haven't, I've been rushing you. I need to let you set the pace more, not keep asking for things I know you're not ready for. I'm happy just to hold your hand, I don't need to keep climbing all over you like I've been doing."

"But baby, I like it when you do that. I like being able to kiss and hold you whenever I feel like it, I've just never done anything like that unless I was behind a locked door... It's a lot easier to handle because I know it's the guys who are watching and I'm doing it with you, but I still have to get used to it." JC smiled at Justin and then leaned a little more firmly back against his chest and looked at the others. "It helps a lot that you three are so supportive."

"That's what family is for, Josh. We love you two and want you both--" Lance's eyes went wide suddenly as he broke off, then exclaimed, "Shit!" He pulled away from Joe to hurry to the bathroom, leaving the others all looking surprised and wondering what was wrong. Lance reappeared almost immediately, looking relieved, and when he saw their faces he gave them a wry grin. "Sorry. I just remembered I turned on the water in the hot tub when I went to use the bathroom, and I was afraid I'd let it overflow."

Chris laughed. "That's our Scoop... He wakes us up every day, he makes sure we eat and have clean clothes to wear, and if we want he even draws us a bath before bed."

The others all laughed as Lance swept them a bow. "Thank you, I try. Now, as I said before, it's almost three am and I'm going to bed. Anyone interested is welcome to join me, but I do intend to get some sleep before I have to get you goons up in three hours."

Chris started for the bathroom as Joey grinned at Lance and said, "Go ahead, we'll be there in a minute."

Lance walked over to JC and Justin and stood by them. "Night, you two. Just be happy, okay? Don't worry about anything else." When they nodded Lance stood on his tiptoes and gave them each a quick kiss on the cheek, then turned and went to his room.

Chris came out of the bathroom a minute later and waved to them as he walked to Lance's door, grinning. "Night!"

When Joey came out of the bathroom a few minutes later JC and Justin were still standing in the same place as when he went in, both with their eyes closed, and he stopped to look at them with a smile. Justin's cheek was resting against JC's hair while JC leaned back against him, Justin's arms folded across JC's stomach as the older man slowly rubbed them.

Justin opened his eyes after a minute to see Joey watching them and Justin grinned at him. "Night, Joe."

JC opened his eyes too then and smiled at Joey as he said, "G'night."

Joey grinned at them and then headed for bed as he replied, "Night guys. Have fun."

After the door closed behind him JC and Justin stood sliently for a moment longer before Justin said quietly, "If you'd rather we can just go to bed sweetheart, I won't mind."

JC pulled out of Justin's arms then and grabbed his hand, grinning at him over his shoulder as he pulled him towards the bathroom. "Oh no, baby, you're not getting out of it that easy!"

Justin laughed and let JC drag him into the bathroom, shutting the door behind them.

 


	17. Chapter 17

 

 

~~~~17~~~~

 

The loud ringing of the phone the next morning quickly incited a groan. "Somebody answer that thing," Chris whined, shifting slightly in his position sprawled half on top of Joey to hide his face against Joey's chest.

Lance blinked sleepily against Chris' shoulder, too comfortable to really want to move, then sighed and lifted his head to look over Chris' shoulder. "Joe?"

Joey snorted softly and pushed at Chris' chest as he grumbled, "I'll get it if you get off me, Critter."

Chris groaned and Lance moved to give Chris room to shift over off of Joey and let him up, then Joey rolled way from them and reached for the lamp. Lance rested his head on Chris' shoulder, draping an arm across his back as he watched Joey pick up the phone.

"Hello?" Joey said, sounding more than half asleep as flopped back onto his back again, rubbing his eyes with one hand as he held the phone to his ear with the other.

"Good morning, Mr. Bass," a cheery female voice said. "This is the six am wake-up call you requested. Should I send up a pot of coffee?"

"Not yet," Joey answered, sounding a bit more awake. "Thank you."

Chris grumbled something unintelligible and shifted slightly as Lance moved to prop himself up on one elbow to look at Joey, smiling at the bemused expression on Joey's face.

"You're quite welcome, Mr. Bass," the woman said. "Don't hesitate to call if there is anything we can do for you."

"Thank you," Joey said again, then hung up the phone. He laid there a minute blinking slowly before he looked over at Lance. "She thought I was you."

"I'm not surprised," Lance said with a smile, moving to sit up against the headboard. "I am the one who called last night to request the wake-up call."

"Do we hafta get up already? It's not even light out yet, I can feel it," Chris grumbled between them then, propping his chin up on his hands to look at Lance.

Lance raised an eyebrow at Joey questioningly, causing Joe to grin and nod. Lance grinned back and then looked at Chris. "I'm going to go take a shower with Joe, but you can go back to bed for an hour if you want." He climbed off the bed then and went over to his suitcase.

Chris turned to watch, lifting a hand to point at Lance after a moment. "That, Joe, is a great ass. I'm getting out of bed a fucking hour earlier than I have to, all because of that ass and the guy wearing it."

Lance snorted softly as he laid his shaving kit next to his suitcase, trying not to grin, then he zipped up the outer pocket on the bag and opened the main zippers only to make a face. Somebody had been in his suitcase again. His clothes were all crammed in and mixed up instead of neatly folded like he'd left them, and the more he looked the more it seemed like someone had run off with some of them again. A quick check proved that at least one pair of jeans was missing, as was the green t-shirt he'd just put in there the day before, and his underwear seemed to be gone too, or moved.

Joey chuckled and sat up to stretch, watching Lance dig through his suitcase until the blond flipped a t-shirt up to lay on his shoulder. Joey stood to go to his own suitcase then, still grinning. "It is a nice ass, you're right. And the hour for fucking was his idea, Chris. You oughta be thanking him for getting us up early."

Lance looked over his shoulder at Joey and grinned at him as he finally pulled a pair of underwear out of his bag and draped them over his shoulder with the t-shirt. He looked back down to root around until he found the comfortable old pair of jeans he intended to wear for the long bus ride. He slung the jeans over his shoulder with his other clothes and began straightening his bag so he could get it to close again, making a mental note to check the other guys' bags for his clothes when he put up the clean laundry.

Chris was incessantly borrowing his jeans and not returning them, Joey and Justin both had a bad habit of looking in his bag for a t-shirt if they ran out of clean ones. The only one that wouldn't borrow his underwear was JC, so Lance's clothes quite often wound up scattered through four suitcases. Of course, Joey, Justin, and Chris borrowed each other's clothes too and seldom returned them, so much so that Lance doubted they even knew who some of them belonged to anymore. He finally got his bag zipped shut then and picked up his shaving kit, turning to lean against the dresser and look at the other two. "Chris, if you want to join me you'd better keep it down. I don't want you waking JC and Justin up this early."

Chris snorted and climbed off the bed. "Great, they sleep while we go get wet again with Mr. Clean here. My ears aren't even dry yet from last night!"

Joey chuckled and he started putting things back in his bag. "I told you staying underwater so long wasn't as easy as you thought."

Lance gave Chris an amused look and said, "Why don't you just go back to bed? I'll wake you up when breakfast gets here."

Chris laughed and walked over to his bag to find a pair of boxers. "I'm already up at the ass-crack of dawn, I am not gonna miss out on sex in the shower just to get an hour of sleep! I can always sleep on the bus."

Chris finally pulled out a pair of boxers that had been washed so many times they'd faded from red to pink and tucked them under his arm to free his hands to dig around for some pants, missing the funny look Lance gave him. The boxers Chris had taken off the night before had been just as old and in even worse shape, almost see-through and faded to an ugly grey that left no clue what color they'd originally been. When Lance had seen them he'd been quite glad Chris wore decent ones for concerts, even if they were usually his.

"Chris, how much money do you have in your wallet?" Lance finally asked, walking to the door as Joey picked up his things and started that way.

Chris looked at Lance like he was crazy for a second and then shrugged. "I dunno, a few hundred I think. Why?"

Lance grinned. "Then don't you think you can afford some underwear?" He left the room with Joey not far behind him, laughing at the way Chris spluttered.

 

~*~

 

Forty-five minutes later, Lance carried his suitcase and a laundry bag out of their room to put it by the door to the suite with Chris' before he started towards the room JC and Justin were in. Chris was sitting indian style on the bar, eating a piece of leftover pizza and drinking a can of Mountain Dew. As Lance walked by him the younger man paused to steal a bite from his pizza, and Chris leaned down to give Lance a quick kiss on the cheek and then grinned at him. Lance grinned back at him before he continued on to JC and Justin's door and knocked softly.

There wasn't an answer so Lance tried the doorknob and went inside, closing the door behind him when he saw the two on the bed. JC was laying sprawled on his stomach with Justin using him as a full body pillow, both of them completely naked and sound asleep. Lance shook his head and grinned, glad Joey hadn't come to wake them. He had taken enough embarrassing Polaroids of the two in Lance's opinion, and that was before they were even together.

Lance walked over to the bed, pulling a sheet up over them before he sat down next to JC, finally noticing how happy he looked even asleep. He gently shook JC's shoulder after a moment as he said softly, "Josh? It's time to get up, sweetheart. I'm about to order breakfast."

Lance left his hand on JC's shoulder, fully expecting he'd have to shake him again, but JC's eyes opened after a moment and he blinked sleepily at Lance several times before he smiled. "Okay," he said softly after another moment, "I'm awake."

Lance smiled at JC and patted his shoulder, then pulled his hand away as he said quietly, "What do you want for breakfast?"

JC yawned, moving a hand up to rub at his eyes as he rolled slightly more onto his side. Justin made a soft noise and tightened his arm around JC's waist, pulling JC back against his chest as he rolled to his side too. JC grinned and relaxed to settle back against Justin a little more firmly, obviously more awake as he looked at Lance and said quietly, "I'm not really hungry, Scoop. Just a muffin or something will be fine."

Justin didn't even open his eyes as he spoke then, his voice low and rumbly with sleep. "He'll have scrambled eggs and bacon with toast and juice."

JC chuckled softly and squirmed around in Justin's arms until he could look at him. "Baby, I'm really not hungry, I can't eat all that. We just had pizza a few hours ago and you made me eat three slices then."

Justin finally opened his eyes and looked at JC. "Maybe not, but you're gonna try. If you don't, I'll pout at you all morning."

JC huffed and made a face. "You don't play fair."

It was Justin's turn to chuckle as he answered, "'Course I don't, I wanna win."

Lance laughed and stood to leave the room, looking down at Justin as he asked, "Do you want the same thing you ordered for Josh, or just cereal?"

Justin looked hopefully up at Lance. "How much pizza is left?"

Lance grinned. "Well, there was only one slice without olives and four of the supreme left when I came in here. Chris was chowing down then though, so if you want pizza you better get up fast."

Justin snorted. "Order me some cereal, please?" He buried his face against JC's neck, making a growly noise and nipping lightly as JC giggled and squirmed. Justin had found out the night before that JC's neck was especially sensitive, and he was having fun driving him crazy at every opportunity.

Lance chuckled and headed for the door. "Breakfast will be here before too long, so you need to get a move on if you want a shower before we go."

"We'll be out there in a minute," JC called as Lance went out the door and then broke down into more giggles.

Lance looked back just as Justin moved on top of JC and dislodged the sheet enough to give Lance an eyeful. Justin was still licking and nibbling at JC's neck while JC squirmed and giggled under him, and Lance almost laughed when he realized that JC's hands were just resting on Justin's chest, making no effort to push him away.

Lance grinned and left, shutting the door behind him before he walked over to the bar.

Joey was drinking a Dr Pepper and looking at a sheet of paper while Chris ate another slice of pizza. Joey looked up as Lance stopped next to him and offered him his drink with a grin. "The bellhop just dropped off a breakfast menu. This thing has everything under the sun on it."

"Good," Lance answered with a smile, then took a drink of the Dr Pepper and gave the can back to Joey as he looked up at Chris. "Did you eat the last slice without olives?"

Chris shook his head. "No, I figured Justin would want it, why?"

Lance smiled. "Because he does and I was gonna ask you to save it for him."

Chris was about to say something in reply - a smart-assed remark judging by his expression - when they heard a thud from JC and Justin's room, followed by giggles and then a moment of silence before JC squealed and laughingly exclaimed, "Justin!"

The three by the bar looked at each other, all wondering what was going on in there, then looked over quickly when the door opened. JC backed out wearing nothing but his necklace and a sheet, laughing as he looked back into his room and said, "I'm taking a shower before breakfast."

The three out by the bar couldn't see Justin, but they clearly heard him say, "Aw come on, babe. We'll be stuck on the bus all day and--"

JC interrupted him, grinning. "And if you'll bring me some clothes, you can join me." Justin whooped as JC closed the door and JC chuckled softly, then turned around to see the other three staring at him, all surprised. "What?" JC asked, his eyes twinkling with laughter as he tried to look innocent.

Lance and Joey both grinned back at him. "I see you had a good time after we went to bed," Chris said with a huge grin.

JC's eyebrows rose. "How can you tell?"

Joey laughed and said, "C, dude, you've got a hickey on your hip and another on your neck that weren't there last time we saw you."

JC blushed and pulled the sheet up higher as he started across the room to the bathroom, talking as he went. "Okay," he said, "so maybe it was a really good night." He paused at the door to the bathroom and then grinned wickedly at them. "You were right about the hot tub, Lance. I hope you're right about the shower, too." He ducked into the bathroom without waiting for a reply.

Chris grinned at Lance and Joey as they turned back to the bar. "Getting laid agrees with him."

Lance chuckled and then picked up Joey's drink again as he said dryly, "Chris, sweetheart, getting laid agrees with everyone."

Chris stuck his tongue out at Lance and then took a bite of his pizza while Joey laughed.

Justin walked out a minute later in the sweats he'd worn the night before, a huge grin on his face and a bundle of clothes in one arm. He immediately started for the bathroom, and when he noticed all three of them looking at him he happily said, "G'mornin'!"

Joey grinned. "Yep, and looks like yours might be getting even better."

Justin grinned back at Joey as he reached to open the bathroom door, the sound of running water easily heard as soon as it was open. "I can hope!" Justin said as he went in, closing the door and then locking it with a definite click.

Lance looked at Joey and Chris, amused. "So, what do you two want me to get you for breakfast? And Chris, don't say donuts, you have plenty left on the bus."

Chris grinned at Lance as Joey looked at the menu a second and then said, "I think I'd like the steak and eggs."

Lance smiled. "Okay. I know you want your steak rare, Joe, but how do you want your eggs? Scrambled, fried or in an omelet?"

Joey cocked his head to the side slightly, thinking, then shrugged. "I don't care, just something with cheese. And a cup of coffee."

Lance chuckled and looked up at Chris to ask, "Do you want anything?"

Chris shook his head. "Nah, I'll eat pizza."

Lance picked up Joey's drink and finished it with a grin, then started across the room. "Okay, I'm gonna go order on the phone in our room. You two behave."

"Don't we always?" Joey asked, grinning while Chris nodded and tried to look innocent.

Lance just snorted and went into the other room, shutting the door behind him.

 

 ~*~

 

Later that morning, Joey, Lance, and Chris were all sitting on the couch watching A-Team on TV Land while JC sat at the small table across the room, still picking at his breakfast and not looking very happy about it. There were two empty plates and a bowl on the table from the others' breakfasts, as well as a small carton of milk, two coffee mugs, a glass of juice and JC's plate, which still held some scrambled eggs and a piece of toast.

Justin came out of the room he'd shared with JC and carried both of their suitcases and a laundry bag to the door, setting one suitcase down to open the door so he could go out into the hall and put them with the others' bags on the cart a bellhop had brought up. "Here you go," Justin said and smiled at him, "thanks." The bellhop nodded and started off down the hall as Justin went back in the suite.

Justin decided to go sit with JC but he paused behind the couch to watch the television for a moment as Murdock sang the worm song, laughing when B.A. told him to shut up. "That guy is insane, I don't know how B.A. and Face put up with him."

"Hey!" Chris exclaimed, "I like him, he's cool!"

Justin snorted and started towards JC again as the show went to a commercial. "You would, you're almost as crazy as he is."

Joey and Lance both chuckled at the look on Chris' face as he said, "I get the feeling he didn't mean that in a good way."

JC gave Justin a dirty look when he sat down beside him. "I told you I wasn't hungry."

The three on the couch exchanged knowing looks as JC picked at what was left of his eggs with a look bordering on revulsion.

Justin watched JC for a moment and then took the piece of toast off JC's plate to take a bite. "You ate the bacon and most of the eggs and drank the orange juice," Justin said around a mouthful of toast. "That's good enough I guess, and a whole lot more than you would have eaten if I let you order."

JC looked relieved and pushed the plate over in front of Justin. "Good! You ordered it, so you can finish it."

Justin just nodded and took another bite of the toast, not at all put out. He had figured that would happen when he told Lance what to order.

The three on the couch exchanged grins and looked back up at the television as the show came back on, not at all surprised by the exchange. Justin had been making JC eat for years, ever since the time Lance collapsed on stage. The doctor had examined the others too 'just to be safe' and hadn't gotten the reaction he wanted when he notified their handlers there was a problem, so he had pulled Chris, Joey, and Justin aside to talk to them. He told them about Lance's heart problem and that it had nearly killed him, then said JC would be the next one to collapse if he didn't start eating more and getting some rest. Lance had followed the doctor's orders so well that the PR people had complained he was gaining too much weight, but even with Justin's 'help' JC was still, as Chris had often said, 'ten kinds of skinny'.

JC's problem wasn't anything like Lance's heart condition, though. He just had a high metabolism and didn't get hungry very often for some reason, especially when they were on tour. Combine those two things with the fact that JC often danced several hours a day and that when he finally did get hungry he wouldn't bother to find something to eat, and the result was that JC was muscular but perpetually underweight. The fact he never seemed to be hungry had driven Justin crazy for a while, but he'd finally worked out a solution that seemed to work: when Justin got hungry he suggested that JC needed to eat something, then pestered him until he did. JC had finally gained enough that the others couldn't easily see his ribs anymore, but he lost it again at the drop of a hat so Justin kept after him to eat even though JC insisted he didn't need to.

Justin finished JC's breakfast just before A-Team ended, and when Lance turned the tv off Justin was drinking the last of the milk that had been sent up for his cereal. "Okay guys," Lance said as he stood up from the couch, "we gotta get moving. Let's do a room check so we can go." He headed for JC and Justin's room to make sure they hadn't left anything, since they were the two most likely to do just that.

"I'll take the bathroom," Chris said quickly. "Joe, you go mess up the room we didn't use."

"Cool." Joey grinned and went to the door they hadn't opened yet as Chris disappeared into the bathroom.

JC and Justin looked at each other and then grinned. "I guess that means I get to check their room," Justin said as he stood up and started across the room.

JC stood too and followed Justin. "We'll both check, you'd miss something."

Justin looked over his shoulder to stick his tongue out at JC as he went in the door but he didn't argue. He knew that he was the one who most often forgot something.

Joey finished first and walked out to the bar to put the last three cans of Mountain Dew in the same box as the rest of the Dr Pepper, sure that they would want them on the long bus ride later that day.

"Lance left something!" Chris crowed as he walked out of the bathroom a minute later to join Joey at the bar and show him the ring he held in one hand, keeping the other hand down at his side even though it was holding something, too.

Joey laughed. "It's about time, he never forgets stuff."

Lance stepped out of JC and Justin's room carrying a t-shirt then and grinned at them. "Who never forgets stuff?"

"You!" Chris said with a huge grin as he held up the ring. "You left this in the bathroom."

Lance walked over and put the t-shirt on the bar before he took the ring, slipping it onto a finger as he shrugged. "At least I forgot something small, instead of a pair of jeans like you did the other day."

Chris made a face at Lance just as JC and Justin came out of the room the other three had slept in.

"Chris," Justin said with a grin, "dude, you left your necklace again, and Lance, you left your boxers by the bed."

Lance's eyebrows went up and he said, "I did not, I put them in the laundry bag myself. " He looked at Chris and Joey and said, "Which one of you numbskulls wore them?"

Chris smirked. "Not me, you were talking bad about my raggedy old underwear last night too, remember?"

Joey looked sheepish. "It was me, I grabbed a pair out of your bag yesterday."

JC handed Chris the wooden bead necklace he'd worn the day before and put the boxers on the bar with the t-shirt that was already there, then made a face at Justin. "I told you to be sure you got my t-shirt, so that one's your fault!"

Justin grinned and stepped closer to JC as he said, "Yeah, but I did pretty good. I got everything else, even the stuff you kicked under the bed."

Chris grinned then and showed JC and Justin what he had in his other hand. "This was in the floor by the hot tub. It belongs to one of you two I know, 'cause we didn't use any in there."

JC and Justin both turned red when they saw what was in his hand, and Justin took the small tube of lubricant, shoving it quickly in his pocket. "Thanks," he said, not really looking at anyone as he went on, "I knew I'd dropped it but I didn't want to stop to look for it."

Joey and Lance both grinned as Chris smirked and said, "I bet you didn't!"

JC blushed a bit darker and said, "It wasn't like that--"

"It sort of was, Josh," Justin said with a little grin, his face still flaming.

JC made a noise and shut up, carefully not looking at the other three and hoping someone, anyone, would change the subject.

Joey and Chris both grinned and looked like they might tease JC and Justin, but Lance just chuckled and took the clothes off the bar, heading towards the door. "Well Josh, it looks like you get to pick a movie on the bus this afternoon since you didn't forget anything for once."

Chris rolled his eyes as JC grinned and jumped at the change of subject. "Great! I know just what we'll watch."

Justin grinned as he watched JC, willing to bet they'd watch a one of the Brat Pack movies JC had bought in Chicago. JC had found the collector's editions on DVD at the Sam Goody's he and Chris had insisted they stop at, and he had been trying to get the others to watch them ever since.

Lance stopped by the door to pick up his backpack and stuff the clothes in it, then slung it over his shoulder and looked at the others. "We ready? Joe, did you grab the drinks?"

Everyone nodded and Joey lifted the box he carried in one hand with a grin, so Lance grinned back at them and led the way out and down the hall to where Lonnie and Dre waited by the elevators.

 


	18. Chapter 18

  
~~~~18~~~~

 

Other than the steady drone of road noise, the bus was unusually quiet when Lance finished his email, and as he began to put his things away he idly wondered why. It had been barely two hours since they left Nashville and usually this time of morning everyone was watching a movie, or the stereo was going, or they were playing a game. For the bus to be nearly silent so early in the day was a little odd.

Lance put his bag away under the front bench and then started towards the bathroom, figuring he’d continue to the back when he was done to see why Chris in particular was so quiet. He almost immediately found that Justin was in his bunk leaning against several pillows he’d undoubtedly grabbed off the other bunks. JC was laying face down between Justin’s legs, his head pillowed on Justin’s stomach with one arm wrapped around Justin’s waist.

Lance paused to watch them, wondering how either of them could be comfortable, but after a moment he decided it didn’t matter to them if they were. Neither would have asked the other to the other to move even before they became lovers, so he seriously doubted they would afterwards. Lance thought that said a lot about just how completely gone on each other JC and Justin had always been, though he wasn’t sure whether it was a good thing for them to be so self-sacrificing in their devotion to each other. Lance, Joey, and Chris also loved each other, but they wouldn’t have hesitated to ask either or even both of the others to move in a similar situation, and Lance couldn’t help but think that was a bit more healthy.

Justin finally noticed Lance and gave him a quick grin as he kept talking softly on the phone, stroking JC’s hair absently with one hand. JC seemed to be sound asleep even though Justin was bright-eyed and obviously not at all tired.

Lance smiled at Justin and then continued down the aisle to the bathroom to disappear inside. A few minutes later he was headed to the very back of the bus, intending to find out what Chris and Joey were doing that was keeping them so quiet. When he opened the door to the lounge he found the answer, and he stopped and smiled.

Chris and Joey were stretched out together in the floor facing the television, watching Yogi Bear with the volume turned down low. Chris appeared to be either asleep or quickly headed that way, but Joey was still awake and looked over his shoulder at Lance when the door opened. Joey smiled at Lance and then laid his head back down on the beanbag chair they were using as a pillow, shifting a little closer to Chris, who moved back against him with a soft noise and then was still again.

Lance watched them for a minute, debating whether or not to join them, but finally turned to go back towards the bunks. This was as good a time as any to put up the two bags of clean laundry, and then he could join Joey and Chris for a nap and not have to take time later when everyone was awake to do the chore. When he reached the bunks again he glanced at Justin, who was still talking softly into his phone, and then reached up to pull both bags of clothes off his bunk and set them in the floor by Chris’ bunk. He sat down there and opened one bag to pull out whatever his hand fell on, quickly folding the clothes as he sorted them into neat piles. He couldn’t really avoid hearing Justin’s side of the phone conversation so he didn’t bother trying; if Justin wanted privacy he’d ask for it.

"Yeah Brit," Justin said quietly, smiling. "It was everything I expected and more." Lance’s eyebrows rose but he didn’t react any other way as he wondered what Justin was talking about. "I know," Justin went on quietly, "Pinky- ... Yeah, you were right. ... That’s- ... No, not just that, but that was terrific too. ... He’s amazing, he does this thing with his tongue. ... Oh yeah."

Lance smiled at that, pretty sure by then what they were talking about and glad JC wasn’t awake to hear it. JC would have been red as a beet and having conniption fits over Justin discussing their sex life with Brit. Lance folded clothes as he listened to the conversation go rather rapidly downhill from where it began. Justin’s answers degenerated quickly to ‘yeah’, ‘no’, and ‘maybe’ with only a few more articulate explanations that had him blushing.

"Who’s that, baby?" JC said softly as Lance started the second bag of laundry, sounding amused and sleepy as he lifted his head to look up at Justin, propping his chin up on one hand.

Justin smiled down at JC and said quietly, "It’s Brit. She says hi. I didn’t wake you, did I?"

JC smiled and leaned towards the phone as he raised his voice a bit and said, "Hi Brit.” JC started to pull away then, adding, “And no, I just needed to move, baby. You didn’t wake me." JC shifted himself up onto his hands and knees over Justin, pausing to arch his back and stretch while Justin watched with a smile and listened to Brit.

Justin chuckled softly after a moment, watching as JC settled into a kneeling position between his thighs. "You better not, girl," Justin said into the phone, "If you do I’ll have to kick your pretty little ass. ... No, you can’t talk to him, he needs to sleep. ... I don’t care whose fault it was he was up all night, he still needs to sleep now. He won’t get much sleep tonight either if I have my way."

JC gave him a ‘don’t go there’ look but Justin just made a face at him. Justin opened his mouth a moment later to say something to Brit, but he paused when JC said, "Lemme talk to her, baby."

Justin started to say something in reply and then closed his mouth as he listened to something Brit said. "You’d better not, Brit, I’m serious! ... Alright, here."

Justin offered the phone to JC, who smiled and took it. "Hey girl, how are you? ... Oh I’m great," JC said with a grin for Justin, and then went on, "What are you arguing with my baby about? ... He is too! He told me so. ... Yeah, that’s right." JC said smugly, then listened for a second and looked up at Justin, his eyes wide. "He did not tell you-" JC turned red and moved the phone away from his mouth a bit to say, "Justin, you are in so much trouble," giving Justin a dirty look.

"What’d I do?" Justin asked, a wide-eyed innocent look on his face that made Lance grin. Justin had used that face on them one too many times over the years and none of them really believed it anymore, usually not even JC, but Justin still tried it.

JC snorted, listening to something Brit said. "Well... Yeah. ... No, I know. ... He just can’t keep his mouth shut to save his life."

"Hey," Justin said, looking put upon. "I can so! Brit and I made a deal, I had to tell her."

" ... Uh-huh, he just said the same thing. Does he get to hear all about your first time too, or was he the only one gullible enough to promise that? ... Why am I not surprised?" JC asked, grinning at Justin when the younger man stuck his tongue out at him. "When did you two make this deal? ... Wow. ... He only had to tell you if it was with me?! Why- ... _Oh_. Well. ...  I’m honored, I think." He paused and listened to her for a minute or so, then smiled and said, "Okay, little bit, I’ll let you go. Love you too. Here he is." JC leaned forward to kiss Justin quickly and then handed him the phone before he moved to the edge of the bunk, smiling at Lance but not pausing as he headed to the bathroom.

"I’ll get you for that, Brit. ... No, don’t you worry your pretty little head over it. ... Okay, I’ll ask him. ... Yeah, I love you too. ... Be good, sassy girl. Bye." Justin closed the phone with a soft click, then looked over at Lance as he shifted positions to sit up more and asked, "Where’d Josh go?"

"Bathroom," Lance answered with a smile. "How’s Brit?"

Justin made a face. "Ornery as ever. She had an interview she had to go to or she’d still be getting me in trouble. I’m supposed to ask you if you checked to see if we got a box?"

Lance’s eyes widened. "I forgot all about it. I’ll call and ask right now." He stood up and headed to the front of the bus to get his cell phone out of his bag, coming back after only a few moments with the phone already to his ear. "Hey Joanna, this is Lance. I was wondering if we’d gotten any packages? ... Yeah, Brit’s mom sent us something and she says we should have had it by now. ... No hurry, we—... Thanks Jo, that’d be great." Lance clicked the phone shut and then grinned at Justin. "Joanna says they haven’t gone through the mail yet, but there’s several boxes in with the regular mail and we got two overnight packages too. She and Melinda are gonna check and then let me know what’s there."

Justin grinned. "Hey, maybe Joey’s mom sent something, it’s been a while since we got one of her boxes." JC wandered back in then and crawled into the bunk to sit on Justin’s lap, straddling his thighs and wrapping both arms around Justin’s waist before he tucked his head under Justin’s chin and relaxed. "Comfy?" Justin asked him softly, amused.

"Uh-huh," JC mumbled, smiling, and closed his eyes with a soft sigh. "Baby?" JC asked softly a moment later.

"Yeah, Josh?" Justin replied, gently stroking JC’s hair back away from his face as JC looked up at him.

"Sing to me, like you used to."

Justin smiled. "Do I get to pick?"

Lance started folding clothes again, wondering when JC had ever needed Justin to sing to him. If anything, he would have figured it was the other way around.

JC thought a moment then smiled as he closed his eyes and snuggled closer. "Yeah, you pick."

Justin kissed the top of JC’s head with a tiny little smile, stroking JC’s back slowly with one hand as he closed eyes. Justin began to sing softly a moment later and Lance looked up, surprised by Justin’s choice. " _Whenever I_ _’_ _m weary, from the battles that rage in my head, you make sense of madness, when my sanity hangs by a thread. I lose my way but still you seem to understand. Now and forever, I will be your man_...”  Justin hummed softly through the notes between verses and then went on softly, “ _Sometimes I just hold you, too caught up in me to see, I_ _’_ _m holding a fortune that heaven has given to me. I_ _’_ _ll try to show you, each and every way I can... Now and forever, I will be your man_..."

Lance watched them with a smile as Justin sang, sure Justin meant every word. He hadn’t heard the song in years, but it perfectly described how Justin felt about JC, or at least how he seemed to. Justin’s heart had belonged to JC long before Justin was a man, and from what Lance had seen Justin was perfectly happy to let JC keep his heart forever.

JC joined Justin for the last verse and chorus, their voices harmonizing effortlessly as they sang softly, " _Now I can rest my worries, and always be sure, that I won_ _’_ _t be alone anymore. If I_ _’_ _d only known you were there, all the time, all this time... Until the day the ocean doesn_ _’_ _t touch the sand, now and forever, I will be your man. ... Now and forever, I will be your man_."

Lance waited until they finished before he smiled and said quietly, "That was beautiful."

Justin opened his eyes and smiled back at Lance. "That’s the song Josh was singing when I realized I loved him, way back when I was just the gawky kid who shadowed everyone’s favorite mouse."

JC lifted his head to look at Justin. "C’mon baby, you were more than my shadow. Everyone liked you."

Justin smiled and brushed back JC’s hair again. "I didn’t care if they liked me though, you were the one I wanted."

JC kissed Justin instead of replying, letting Justin deepen and hold the kiss for a long moment before he pulled away. He kissed Justin softly again and then tucked his head under Justin’s chin, smiling at Lance a moment before he closed his eyes. Justin laid his cheek against JC’s hair and closed his own eyes, and soon the only sign that he was awake was the fact that one hand was slowly stroking JC’s back.

Lance smiled at the picture they made, thinking they looked so right together, and wondered yet again why it had taken them so very long to see it.

Lance watched them for a moment longer before he dumped the last of the laundry on the bed in front of him and began to fold the few clothes left. He was soon left with only a pile of socks to sort, and he began putting them into pairs with rapid efficiency, glad that for the most part they were either identical white socks or easy to tell apart. In just a few minutes he was done and he stood to stretch, then reached up onto the bunk above Justin’s to get JC’s suitcase and gym bag down so he could put away his clothes. When he opened the suitcase he wasn’t the least bit surprised to find it half empty – Justin wore JC’s clothes almost as often as not – and he quickly straightened what was there to add the pile of clothes he’d just folded, setting aside those that belonged in JC’s gym bag.

While he had JC’s gym bag open, Lance opened the shaving kit and took out JC’s electric razor to go switch it for the one that was plugged in, also checking to see if the extra adapter for it was in there and if anything else in his kit needed replaced. He got up and walked to the bathroom after a moment to get JC some more toothpaste out of the cabinet and then went to the kitchen counter to swap out the razors, pausing at the bulletin board to note that JC, Joey and Justin needed more toothpaste and Chris was out of blades for his razor again. He stood there a moment looking at the list and thinking, then added shampoo for himself as well before he put the pen back in its holder and went to finish JC’s suitcase and gym bag.

Lance went through the same routine with each of the guys’ things, sorting clothes back into the right suitcases or bags as he went, saving Chris’ for last because it was invariably the messiest. He took one look inside Chris’ suitcase and then dumped it on the bed because it was such a mess. He was surprised to find that two of JC’s uglier shirts and a positively awful pair of paisley pants had been neatly folded in the bottom of it, but Lance had to grin when he saw them.

Chris knew as well as any of them that JC would never think to go through someone else’s bag for his own missing clothes, he would just assume they were dirty. Lance kept sorting the clothes from Chris’ suitcase and eventually found a pair of his jeans just like he had thought he would. He also found two of Joey’s t-shirts and one of Justin’s sweatshirts, all of them worn but clean enough to wear again by Chris’ admittedly loose standards.

Lance put the fashion disasters in the drawer under Chris’ bunk under some old sweats because he didn’t want to see JC in them again any more than Chris did. The clothes that had been worn were put in one of the empty laundry bags to be washed, leaving Lance wondering again what had happened to his green t-shirt and making a mental note that Chris wasn’t to have a turn putting up the laundry anymore. He would let Chris vacuum or something instead, since Chris had long ago mastered the art of finding fun in even the most mundane task, and vacuuming was one of the chores he never minded doing. Hopefully by distracting Chris with noisy machinery instead of letting him take a turn at laundry, everyone’s clothes would get to the right suitcases.

Lance put away Chris’ things and added that suitcase to where the others were piled on JC’s bunk, then finally headed to the back of the bus to rejoin Chris and Joey. He smiled when he saw they were both sound asleep and paused a moment to think about whether to join them or take the couch. He decided on the floor even though it would be less comfortable, and after another moment he was curled up against Joey’s back, his eyes closed as he relaxed and waited for sleep.

 

 

Not long after Lance went to sleep, JC and Justin moved to stretch out, and Justin was spooned up behind JC with his back against the wall when he woke up abruptly a few hours later. Years of riding the bus had made him aware even in his sleep that something wasn’t right, but he lay there holding JC and listening to the silent bus for a few minutes before he finally realized the problem was that it was too quiet. The bus was no longer moving or even running, and there wasn’t a sound to be heard other than JC’s quiet breathing.

Justin wasn’t really sleepy anymore, but he didn’t want to wake JC so he just relaxed and listened to JC breathe. He had been awake about ten minutes when heard voices at the front of the bus, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying. 

JC woke up not long after the voices stopped and shifted in Justin’s arms, yawning and stretching slightly before he shifted around to lay on his back and look at Justin. "Baby, why’d we stop?"

Justin shrugged, smiling as he lightly rubbed a hand over JC’s belly and replied softly, "I don’t know, sweetheart. I heard somebody talking but I couldn’t hear what they said."

Lance walked down the aisle then, looking half asleep and quite rumpled as he paused by their bunk. "Y’all know why we stopped? We’re in some little bitty town from the looks of it."

JC just shook his head as Justin said, "No, but there was somebody talking up front just a bit ago."

Lance smiled at Justin as they heard the sound of the bathroom door closing. "I’ll go see what’s up. We probably needed gas or something."

Lance continued up to the front, surprised to see Dre sitting in the driver’s seat instead of Andy. "Hey Dre, what’s up? Where’d Andy go?"

Dre smiled, amused at how rumpled Lance looked. "Nothing major, boss. Our bus had a flat and we stopped here to get it fixed. Andy just left for the diner down the street with Travis and Scotty to get some lunch, since we won’t be ready to roll again until two or so. Enjoy your nap?"

Lance gave Dre a wry grin as he stretched and then ran one hand through his hair, making the disarray even worse. "Yeah, I did. I needed the sleep."

Dre chuckled. "I’m sure you did. Lonnie said if you woke up to tell you that we could wait around here, or get in the trucks and go on ahead to Asheville – about a half hour drive – to find someplace to get lunch. The only place to eat here is a little mom and pop diner down the road, and it’s already got a few dozen folks in there hoping to see you guys."

Lance glanced at his watch and made a face. "Joy. Let me go ask the guys what they want to do, but we’ll probably go on ahead to Asheville. We’re more likely to find someplace where we can eat in their meeting room or something and not start a circus. I’ll be right back."

Dre nodded and then Lance turned to go to the back again, not very surprised to see Chris and Joey were sitting on Chris’ bunk across the aisle from JC and Justin, who were both sitting up and waiting expectantly.

"Well?" Chris asked. "Why’d we stop in the middle of nowhere?"

Lance smiled at them and started picking up the pillows out of the floor and tossing them up on his bunk. "One of the other buses got a flat and we stopped here to get it fixed. We have three choices now: either wait here half an hour and then ride the buses into Asheville for lunch, walk down the road to the only diner in town which has already has people gawking for us, or get in the trucks and head on into Asheville to find someplace for lunch and meet the buses later."

Justin spoke up immediately with a grin. "Let’s go to Asheville, now that I’m awake I’m hungry."

JC chuckled and leaned sideways against Justin’s shoulder as he teased, "Baby, you’re always hungry." He straightened and grinned at Lance as he added, "But I agree, I think we should go on ahead. We’ve got our cell phones and the ones in the trucks, and the buses can meet us later."

Joey nodded as Chris grinned and said, "Yeah, and maybe Lonnie will let us go to the mall or something after we eat. Shouldn’t be too crowded on a Sunday afternoon."

Lance snorted as he tossed the last pillow on Chris’ bed. "Yeah Chris, that’s only where every teenage girl in the _world_ hangs out on a weekend afternoon. Going to the mall can wait until we’re in Myrtle Beach, then we can go while most of the kids are at school and the tourists are on their way home." He reached up onto his bunk to get the button-down he’d put up there earlier, then headed to the bathroom. "I’ve got to do my hair, one of y’all can go tell Dre we’re going in the trucks, okay?"

"I’ll tell him," JC said as he hopped up with a grin and started towards the front. Justin started to put his shoes back on, and Joey and Chris exchanged grins before they headed to the back to do the same.

Five minutes later they were all ready to go except JC, who was in the bathroom doing his hair, and Lance, who was talking on the phone and more than a little exasperated. "Look," he said, "you don’t _need_ me for this, talk to Mere! This is my first week off in months and I’ll be damned if I’m gonna spend it doing video conferences when Meredith is there and can handle it just fine. ... Well, tell her I said so! ... Good. No, yeah, I understand, you’re just trying to look out for the business, but I’m trying to look out for me right now. I need a break and I’ve finally got the chance to take one, and I’m not missing out on it for anyone or anything." Lance paused then, listening and looking more annoyed by the second.

"No, you aren’t listening to me, Geofrey," Lance started again, this time getting truly pissed. He didn’t even notice JC walk in to watch and listen with the others as he went on. "Even if the company was going to go _bankrupt_ I’d tell you to shove it until a week from Monday. ... No, my priorities are _not_ screwed up, they’re finally straight. ... Deal with it. You people are not going to run me ragged anymore. ... Because I’m tired of it, dammit! I spend most of my time with my four best friends within thirty feet of me and I never have time to do more than say hi to them if I keep you people happy. ... Well, I’m gonna make time, even if I have to bring in somebody else to run A Happy Place. ... Yes, I mean that, otherwise I wouldn’t have said it. ... Geofrey, the company is _not_ my number one priority and never has been. FreeLance runs just fine without me holding their hand, and by all that’s holy you people can learn to do the same."

There was a long pause then before Lance went on a bit more calmly, "Well, I’m glad we finally understand each other. And tell Mere for me that I said she’d better quit sending everyone to bug me or I’ll stop giving her my number when—... Hell yes I’m serious! I’m tired of this crap, y’all can handle it without me. ... Oh don’t give me that! You’ve been in the business longer than I’ve been _alive_ , Geofrey. ... Well, take it up with me in a week then, I’m leaving right now, and I’m not taking my cell. ... No, don’t bother trying to call me, nobody will be on the bus to answer it. Good bye."

Lance hung up then, and hadn’t even gotten his phone into his backpack when it started buzzing for attention. He glared at the phone a second, then grinned suddenly and pulled the battery pack out of it before he stuck both pieces in his bag. When he looked up a moment later there were four mildly stunned faces staring at him, all wide-eyed but definitely looking pleased.

"Tell ‘em again, Scoop! I missed half of that!" JC said with a huge grin.

Joey chuckled and nodded while Justin just stared at Lance looking awed.

"You are the man, Bass!" Chris crowed. "You should have done that a year ago!"

Lance grinned at them and stood, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. "Yeah, I finally realized I’ve missed out on a lot because I’ve been too busy to hang with you guys as much as I’d like. I told Meredith before the concert last night to stop bugging me, so she sicced Geofrey on me. She thought that because he’s a friend of my father’s he could convince me I was being unreasonable, but I’m not.... Am I?" Lance looked at Chris as he asked that, and Chris shook his head vehemently.

"Hell no!" Chris said, "You bend over backwards for them, you’re not being unreasonable at all. I talk to the folks at FuMan once a month when we’re on the road, and even then I call them. They know not to bother me. Just doing our jobs is a full-time thing when we’re on tour, much less trying to juggle our side projects, too. I’ve felt like you were doing too much for a long time, but I thought that was the way you wanted it."

The others all nodded as Justin said, "Yeah, until the last few days you hadn’t really hung out with us and talked in a long time. We’ve missed you."

JC and Chris nodded again and Lance gave them a wry grin as he said, "Guys, next time say something, please? I didn’t even realize what had happened until after the other bus broke down, and then I couldn’t figure out how to fix it because I had so much work they wanted me to do. I’m glad I was tired enough after that concert in Chicago to blurt out that Joe and I were together. If I hadn’t I’d probably still be trying to figure out why Josh was so depressed that he was hiding out in his own head and why nobody else was really happy either."

JC looked surprised. "I didn’t think anyone had noticed."

The other four looked at him like he was nuts for a moment before Justin said, "Josh, we all saw it. We just didn’t know why, and you wouldn’t talk to anyone, not even me."

Chris nodded. "Yeah, you tuned us all out."

JC looked pensive for a moment before he spoke again. "I didn’t mean to, not at first. Some things Bobbee said to me that last break we had in California hit too close to home, and I went to Tony’s -- y’all remember Tony Lucca, right? – to talk to him about it. Anyway, I made a mistake and then I felt guilty and made another trying to make up for the first, and I only made everything worse."

JC shrugged, not wanting to go into it further and hoping they wouldn’t ask. "When we went back out on tour I was upset about things that I really couldn’t tell you guys, and Justin was talking to Britney every five minutes it seemed like, and Johnny was always harping on me that I was wearing the wrong clothes or talking wrong, or looking at somebody wrong. I was afraid I was going to ruin everything for you guys because I’m gay, and I felt so alone. I didn’t know how to fix any of it, and after a while I realized it was easier not to think about anything but music."

JC was obviously upset, mostly because of remembering how hopeless he’d felt, and Justin gently pulled him into his arms, speaking softly next to his ear as JC laid his head on Justin’s shoulder and held on. "Baby, I’m just as gay as you are and you’re _not_ alone, you never have been. I’ve been right here waiting the whole time, and we’ll all stand by you no matter what. We love you."

JC nodded against Justin’s shoulder, holding him tightly. "I know that, but for a while there I forgot. I’m sorry."

"Don’t be sorry, sweetheart. Just promise me one thing, please? Don’t shut me out again, okay?"

JC nodded and then pulled back to look into Justin’s eyes as he said softly, "I promise. Never again."

Justin smiled and kissed him, then pulled away quickly at the sound of the door to front of the bus opening.

Lonnie stuck his head inside, smiling. "We’re ready to go whenever you guys are. Dre, Scott, James, Mark, and I are gonna be in one truck with you five in the other, just like you wanted, JC. The trucks are both gassed up and we even managed to find a map of Asheville for you."

JC grinned at Lonnie and moved back towards Justin, putting one arm around Justin’s waist as he said, "Thanks Lonnie, we’ll be right out!"

Lonnie nodded and left, and the others all looked at JC as Lance grinned at him and said, "What are you up to, Josh?"

JC grinned blindingly at Lance, obviously thrilled. "Lonnie said I could drive if I keep to the speed limit. I haven’t gotten to drive in months!"

Justin grinned. "I call shotgun!"

Chris stuck his tongue out at Justin, but he wasn’t really annoyed because he knew Justin just wanted to be with JC. "I get to help pick the music."

Justin grinned at Chris. "No problem! Lemme get my bag." Justin pulled away from JC and went back to the bunks, returning after only a minute with his backpack.

JC was still grinning like a loon. "Are my CDs in there, baby?"

Justin nodded. "Yup, and mine too, and even your wallet."

The others laughed at the exchange, and Lance waved them all towards the front of the bus. It was an accepted fact that neither JC or Justin could keep up with a wallet, but between the two of them they might actually remember not to set it down somewhere and walk off from it.

…  And maybe JC could keep Justin from giving waitresses hundred dollar tips too, though Lance wouldn’t bet on that.

 

 

 


	19. Chapter 19

 

~~~~19~~~~

 

Lonnie met them just outside the bus, unable to stifle a grin at JC’s expression when he gave JC the keys. To see him, you would have thought someone just offered JC a Grammy with his name on it, not the keys to an eight month old SUV that had more miles on it than many eight _year_ old vehicles.

JC was beaming and practically bouncing in place as he took the keys. "Thanks man! I’ll be good, I promise."

Lonnie chuckled. "You’d better! We’ll lead the way out to the highway, then we’ll be right behind you. If we get separated you know the drill…"

Justin and Chris both rolled their eyes as they said in unison, "Call you and don’t get out of the car until you find us."

Lonnie grinned. "I got you boys trained pretty good. Now go have fun, just not too much, okay?"

Justin grinned back at Lonnie while JC nodded and said, "We’ll be good!"

Lonnie waved them towards their truck and they all went to get in, Chris sliding into the middle of the back so he could lean forward to play with the stereo if he wanted to while Joey sat behind Justin and Lance sat behind JC. JC adjusted his seat and mirrors with a big grin and then looked at the others expectantly, obviously waiting for something.

Joey, Chris, and Justin exchanged looks and then looked back at JC, grinning but clueless, and Lance chuckled. "Josh, it helps if you put your seat belt on first. It kickstarts their brains into seatbelt mode."

JC laughed. "Oh! Okay!" He buckled in and then watched the others until they had done the same, then looked over at Justin. "Hand Chris some music baby, he can be looking for a CD while we get out to the highway." JC started the truck and waved to Lonnie, then followed the other silver Expedition as it pulled out of the parking lot and started down the small town street.

Justin took JC’s blue bag out of his backpack to open it and lift out the top two folders of discs. "Here Chris," he said, handing Chris one of the folders of music, "you look through that one and I’ll look in this one. What kind of music do you guys want to hear?"

Lance shrugged and smiled at Justin. "I don’t care, everything in there’s okay, JC has good taste –"

JC grinned at him in the rear view mirror. "Hey, thanks."

"—in music," Lance finished, grinning, and JC made a face at him.

Chris looked at Joey as he flipped past a layer of CD’s. "What do you wanna hear, Joe? You hardly ever pick the music."

Joey cocked his head to one side, thinking for a moment or two before he asked, "C, don’t you have a Ramones CD?"

JC nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yeah, folder three, about halfway back."

Chris flipped back to the front of the folder of CDs he had and then handed it back to Justin with a grin. "Wrong one." Justin laid the CDs in his lap with the ones he’d been going through and took another out of JC’s bag, checking inside the cover for the number before he took the last one out and began flipping through it. He paused about midway and asked, "The Ramones Greatest Hits, or the one Chris made that just says Ramones?"

Chris looked over at Joey, who asked, "What’s on the one Chris did?"

Justin shrugged. "It doesn’t say."

JC grinned. "I know! ‘ _Baby I Love You_ ’, ‘ _All Screwed Up_ ’, ‘ _I Wanna Be Sedated_ ’, ‘ _Blitzkreig Bop_ ’, ‘ _Something To_ _Believe In_ ’... Umm... ‘ _Howling At The Moon_ ’, ‘ _Gimme Shock Treatment_ ’... ‘ _Somebody To Love_ ’, ‘ _What I Like About You_ ’, ‘ _Sheena_ ’, ‘ _Rock & Roll High School_’... ‘ _Surfin_ _’_ _Bird_ _’_ and ‘ _Palisades Park_ _’_ , for sure. I think there’s a few more too, but I’m not sure which ones. It’s a really good CD, has all of their best stuff on it, and more tracks than the Greatest Hits album."

Joey grinned. "Put it in Jup, that one sounds great. The Ramones were one of the first New York punk bands to make it big, and still one of the best ever."

Justin grinned and put the CD in the stereo, then pushed play and slowly turned the volume up until it was at a comfortable level. The Expedition had a great stereo in it that the guys had installed themselves right after they got it, and it could easily blast them out if Justin really turned it up. They’d all been inordinately proud of themselves after installing the system, complete with several extra speakers, even if it had taken the five of them a full day to do what a decent mechanic could have done in two hours.

The first song started and JC immediately began grinning and moving slightly to the beat, tapping it out on the steering wheel as he followed Lonnie and the other Expedition. " _Have I ever told you_ ," he started singing, perfectly in time with the music, " _how good it feels to hold you, it isn_ _’_ _t easy now to explain... And though I_ _’_ _m really trying, I think I may start crying, my heart can_ _’_ _t wait another day. When you kiss me I just gotta, kiss me I just gotta, kiss me I just gotta say: Baby, I love you, come on baby, baby I love you, sweet baby. Baby, I love, I love only you._ "

JC was singing with his happiest grin -- the crinkly-eyed one the fans seldom saw- and by the end of the chorus the others were all grinning and singing along too. " _I can_ _’_ _t live without you, I love everything about you, I can_ _’_ _t help it that I feel this way. I_ _’_ _m so glad I found you, I wanna wrap my arms around you, I love to hear you call my name. Oh tell me that you feel, tell me that you feel, tell me that you feel the same. Baby, I love you, come on baby, baby I love you, sweet baby... Baby, I love, I love only you_."

‘ _All Screwed Up_ ’ was next, and only JC knew all of the words so they just listened to him happily singing along. Lance grinned at Chris when he realized it was another of the ‘baby’ songs JC sang for and about Justin. Lance had come to the conclusion Chris had picked up on JC being in love with Justin a long time ago, and when Chris winked at him then went back to watching JC, he was sure he was right.

" _Baby, baby, baby can_ _’_ _t you see_ ," JC sang as the third verse started, " _you don_ _’_ _t know what you_ _’_ _re doin_ _’_ _to me. Aw yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah... I need you baby, can_ _’_ _t you see... You don_ _’_ _t know what you_ _’_ _re doin_ _’_ _to me, aw yeah, oh yeah, oh. I love the music business but it makes me sick, everybody_ _’_ _s beautiful and full of shit, but ooh I love the way you shake your hips, oh yeah. I need your body, baby, next to mine. Oooh yeah baby we_ _’_ _ll sure feel fine. I need you baby, yeah..._ "

The chorus started again then and Justin joined in with a big grin. Justin was dense but he was beginning to realize that JC had been singing about him for a long time and he’d just never known it. The more of JC called him baby the happier Justin got, even though he’d been annoyed at first to be suddenly called ‘baby’ again after finally convincing everyone but Chris that he was an adult. Justin had thought a lot about it while JC slept in his arms the night before, and he had finally realized that JC often sang and wrote about his ‘baby’, and to JC music was his life.

The third song, ‘ _I Wanna Be Sedated_ ’, was one they’d often joked was Chris’ theme song. They all knew the words and sang along loudly, laughing uproariously as Chris improvised new lyrics for the chorus and last verse of the song. "Twenty, twenty, twenty four hours or so, I wanna be fellated. No one to do, nowhere to go, I wanna be fellated. Just put me on my back and suck me real slow, hurry hurry hurry before I go loco. I wanna feel your fingers, I want it bad you know, oh no oh ho oh oh... Twenty, twenty, twenty four hours or so, I wanna be fellated. No one to do, nowhere to go, I wanna be fellated."

JC’s face was scarlet by the time they pulled out onto I-40 east just after the song ended, and Chris was teasing him mercilessly as Dre moved over to let them pass, falling in behind them. JC set the cruise control for seventy and they began to seriously book it down the highway, laughing and teasing each other as they sang along to the songs they knew and just generally enjoyed the drive. They hardly ever got to travel when it was just them, and to be allowed even just a little while of relative freedom felt great.

 

 

 

It wasn’t quite two-thirty that afternoon when they drove into Asheville, and Lance directed them down what the map Lonnie had given them indicated was the main road through town to look for a decent restaurant. The other Expedition was still right behind them when JC flipped on the blinker a few minutes later to turn into the parking lot of a Ryan’s Steakhouse, all of them grinning as Justin turned off the CD player and JC looked for a parking place.

The restaurant wasn’t very crowded and they were soon parked and waiting for Lonnie to give them the go-ahead, all anticipating the great meal soon to be had. Ryan’s had a superb hot and cold buffet and a bakery/dessert bar, plus a regular menu that included everything from seafood to lasagna and all sorts of things in between. They had eaten at Ryan’s restaurants all over the south and were almost always able to either get a couple of big booths in the back or a conference room for themselves and their bodyguards, but the best reason to go there was that they had seldom been really bothered while in one. Ryan’s restaurants were more popular with older adults than with teenagers, and the guys had never run into a ravening horde of fans while eating in one.

Lonnie and Dre walked over to the truck after a few minutes and waved, smiling. They all got out and then followed the two burly black men inside to be shown to a booth in the back by a very wide-eyed blond waitress about Justin’s age. There were whispers as they passed a few tables but the guys didn’t make a lot of eye contact, instead concentrating on following their bodyguards and trying hard to pretend they didn’t expect screaming teenies to pop up any second. Once the group was seated, Dre and Lonnie joined James at a nearby table while Scott and Mark sat alone at other tables situated so that they could watch the buffet because Lonnie was sure that Justin and Chris would go for it, and probably Joey too. They usually did so they could have a little bit of everything, instead of just a steak or one some other entree from the menu.

The waitress brought them menus after only a few minutes, and Justin and Chris didn’t even bother to look before immediately ordering the buffet and a pitcher of Mountain Dew. JC was going to order the kids steak fingers plate but Justin gave him a dirty look and told him to get a real meal, so JC ordered a thick steak smothered in mushrooms and onions with fries. That earned a grin from Justin, who was sure he’d wind up eating half the steak, and a chuckle from Lance, who had ordered steak and pasta for himself. Joey looked over the menu and finally ordered lasagna _and_ the buffet, giving Chris the perfect opening to start ribbing him about not being able to make up his mind.

Fifteen minutes later they were all eating companionably while Chris cracked jokes about the way Justin was eating most of JC’s steak while JC picked at the salad Justin had built, neither of them bothering to switch plates but instead reaching back and forth.

"Josh, c’mon, you oughta eat at least some of your own steak," Chris said finally with a grin for JC, giving up on teasing them. "You need to put meat on your bones, not leaves!"

Lance and Joey both laughed at that, but Justin just grinned and said, "Hey, at least he’s eating, leave him alone. And he did eat some of the steak, I saw him."

“Thank you.” JC beamed at Justin and took another forkful of Justin’s salad.

Chris shook his head and got up to go refill his plate, mumbling about fools and children.

Lance had just watched JC and Justin eating off each other’s plates with a grin until then, wondering if either of them had noticed they’d gotten what the other liked best. Justin loved steak with mushrooms and onions, and JC was a big fan of a good salad with lots of cheese, turkey, and Thousand Island dressing. JC’s lemon tea had gone by the wayside at some point and he was even drinking out of Justin’s glass before they were halfway through the meal, perfectly happy to share even though the waitress gave them an odd look when she offered to get JC another glass and he politely refused.

Lance watched them a bit closer after the waitress left and realized that they had gone back to the way they acted before Justin began dating Brit, which made him wonder what might have happened if Johnny hadn’t encouraged Justin to date her. So far JC and Justin had settled into their ‘friends who share everything’ routine easily and Lance suddenly found himself wondering if he’d even be able to tell if they ever went just that little bit too far in public. Lance thought of himself as a rather perceptive person, but these two had somehow managed to convince him and even each other that they were nothing but friends for years and he couldn’t see how. The closest friendship Lance had ever seen was suddenly, obviously – to him at least – the behavior of two men who were completely devoted to each other.

A few brave souls came by their table and very politely asked for autographs but for the most part the group was left alone to eat in peace and enjoy their unexpected treat. Not quite an hour later, they were back outside joking around in the sunshine under the watchful eyes of their security while Lonnie called the buses to see how things were going.

Lonnie called the group back over to their Expedition after a few minutes, and as soon as they were close enough to hear him he said, "The patch on the bus tire that blew went out again and they’re headed for Asheville now, about five miles out of town. Jo has already found a place here in town that will completely replace the tire, but it’s going to take an hour or more after the bus gets there because the truck stop is pretty busy. If we meet the buses now you’re probably going to miss your dinner reservations, but if we go on in the trucks we’ll make it in plenty of time and the buses can meet us at the hotel. It’s completely up to you guys."

The five of them exchanged looks and then Lance turned to Lonnie. "We’ll go in the truck."

Lonnie smiled. "And how did I know that would be the answer? Next question is who’s driving? It’s a six hour drive yet or a bit more, and I’d feel better if you stop to switch off. I know you guys are all tired and I don’t want you risking falling asleep at the wheel, okay?"

Lance smiled. "We won’t fall asleep, Lonnie. JC can keep driving for now, and when he wears down some Justin or Chris can drive a couple hours, then we’ll switch again." He looked at the others and asked, "Sound good, guys?"

The others nodded and Chris said, "Yeah, Justin can drive next since he hardly ever gets to drive either, then me and Joe can move up front and take our turns."

Joey nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

Lance turned to Lonnie with a grin. "That meet with your approval, boss?"

Lonnie snorted, amused. "Yeah, it does. You guys enjoy the drive. We’ll try to stick with you, but if we get separated and you have to switch drivers just be careful, okay? Call if you need us."

They all indicated they understood, and within a few minutes they were pulling out of the parking lot, JC driving again while Justin flipped through CDs, suggesting titles or artists until Lance spoke up. "Why not another of the mix discs Chris made? Aren’t they in there?"

JC nodded. "Yeah, they are. Look in folder three, baby. The last fifteen or so CDs. They all have a title to give you an idea what they are."

Justin picked up the right book and flipped to the CDs in the back to begin reading off titles. " _Punk, Bangin, Smooth, Sweet, Love, Eighties, Heavy, Hair, Fun, Chick Rock, Surf, Rap, Bounce, 99, 2000, 2001, Oldies_ , and _Yoga_."

JC nodded, smiling. "Yoga is the one I listened to before soundcheck yesterday, the instrumentals. _Bangin_ is the one that Chris and I were dancing to just before the concert, and _Fun_ is the one we heard just before lunch yesterday. The others are all just what they say they are..." JC trailed off with a grin, looking at Lance in the rear view mirror, then asked, "What are you in the mood for, Scoop?"

Lance looked thoughtful a moment, then grinned. "About the _Chick Rock_ CD... Do I remember right that one had several Jewel songs with some Sheryl Crow, Melissa Etheridge, Madonna, Belinda Carlisle, Paula Cole, Heart, and the Indigo Girls?"

JC grinned and nodded. "Yup, that’s the one!"

"Let’s listen to it," Lance said with a grin.

Justin put the CD in question in the stereo, then put the rest of them away and sat back as they continued on down the highway Lonnie had told them to take, singing along with the music in between bouts of talking about whatever the lyrics or scenery made them think of.

JC had been driving about two hours with Justin sound asleep for about half that when Joey suggested they switch drivers at the next rest area, a mile down the road. Lance called Lonnie to let him know, and within a couple minutes they stopped at the nearly deserted rest stop.

JC climbed out of the truck and stretched, then walked around to the passenger side to wake Justin. He had already decided Justin would get to drive another time. He thought Justin was too tired and JC didn’t want to risk it, which Lance heartily agreed with. Justin was groggy enough when JC woke him that he unquestioningly climbed in the back, and soon he was between JC and Lance, sleeping on JC’s shoulder while Chris drove. JC spread Justin’s blanket over the two of them and settled in comfortably against Justin, listening to the music while Joey, Lance, and Chris talked about the merits of eighties music, and it wasn’t long before he fell asleep as well.

 

 

 

JC woke up just after dark to silence other than the soft hum of road noise, wondering why they had turned off the music. Justin had taken his seat belt off and was asleep on the seat facing the back of the truck with his head in JC’s lap, his nose lightly brushing JC’s stomach with each breath and one arm loosely around him. JC heard a noise then and looked up front, widening his eyes in surprise when he saw Joey was sitting in the seat in front of JC, leaning back against the head rest as he made a soft sound in his throat and rocked slowly, making the seat creak slightly.

JC couldn’t see it, but from the noises and Joey’s reaction he was quite sure that Chris was giving him a blow job. In public. At seventy miles an hour. Less than two feet from JC. JC thought the ‘less than two feet from him’ part was the worst, because now he had rather insistent images of Justin doing the same thing to him flitting through his mind, and Justin was _right there._ ... And completely oblivious.

JC saw Lance watching him with a wicked little grin then and turned bright red, closing his eyes to pretend he was trying to go back to sleep even though Justin was sprawled across his lap and his jeans were suddenly much too tight. Joey groaned a little louder a moment later and Justin shifted against JC, moving closer as one hand slid JC’s shirt up a few inches. JC shivered when he felt Justin’s breath on his stomach and looked down to see midnight blue eyes shining up at him, then closing again as Justin leaned in to lick just above his jeans, nuzzling JC’s stomach as his mouth moved across the skin leaving a damp trail. After a moment JC’s hand moved to cup Justin’s chin, urging Justin upwards, and Justin rolled enough in the seat to get one knee under himself and sit up to kiss JC, gently nudging his thighs apart with his other knee as he moved to straddle one of JC’s legs and settle against him firmly.

Chris chuckled a little while later as he climbed back into the back seat and said, "Looks like we woke up the kids, Joe."

JC and Justin ignored him, completely absorbed in each other as they kissed, Justin’s hips rocking against JC while JC’s hands roamed across Justin’s ass, slow and possessive.

Joey turned in his seat to look at the couple behind him, then grinned. "Looks like we woke them up real good, huh?"

Lance snorted. "I think you could say that, yeah. I’m glad it’s dark; between the four of you, you’d have us all in jail, not to mention the newspapers."

Chris moved to lean forward between Lance’s seat and Joey’s, then grinned wickedly at Lance as he slid one hand slowly up Lance’s thigh. "But it is dark, so it’s okay. You could play too, y’know, it’s your turn. Joe-bear will take the wheel a while, won’t you?"

Joey nodded at Lance, who looked sorely tempted for a minute before he saw a sign, then suddenly grinned and reached for the phone. "Sit back down, Chris." Chris moved back and Lance dialed the phone with his thumb, then spoke into it. "Lonnie? Yeah, we’re gonna switch again at the next rest area. ... No, we’re not sleepy, I’m just tired of driving. ... Yeah, it’s Joey’s turn next. ... I’ll keep an eye on him. ... Okay." Lance hung up, then looked in the rear view mirror at JC and Justin. "JC?" he said loudly.

Justin made an annoyed noise and moved against JC one more time before he pulled away, breathing hard. "This better be important," Justin growled, turning his head to look at Lance without moving off of JC.

JC murmured softly, "Be nice, baby." He looked at Lance then and asked with only a little bit of a blush, "What did you need?"

Lance turned his head quickly to smile at JC and then looked back at the road. "We’re about to pull into a rest area. I thought you’d like some warning."

Justin groaned and flopped to sit between Chris and JC, pouting and still breathing a bit harder that normal. "You guys have the worst damn timing in the world."

Chris and Joey both chuckled, and Lance had to grin.

JC swatted Justin’s leg and grinned at him. "It’s not that bad, baby. We just have to behave for a few minutes... Don’t you think you can?"

Justin rather blatantly adjusted himself in his tight button-fly jeans, snorting softly. "Five minutes is long enough for you to think about it too much."

The other three laughed at that, thinking Justin had a good point, and they were surprised when JC grinned at Justin and said softly, "Oh, I’ve been thinking about it, I promise." He reached across Justin’s lap to his left front pocket and patted it familiarly, making Justin’s eyes widen as he remembered what was in there.

Justin grinned suddenly then and folded his arms across his chest, looking at Lance. "Okay, get the switching done with already."

Lance just snickered and drove on in silence, pulling off the highway into the rest area as soon as they reached the entrance, followed closely by the other Expedition as he drove to a well-lit parking place and parked the truck. Lonnie parked next to them and Dre and Scott got out to go stand near the front of the trucks as Lance turned in his seat to look at JC. "Would you rather Chris and I both sit up front? It’d give you two more room," Lance raising, raising one eyebrow questioningly.

JC shrugged, grinning. "I don’t care. As long as I can reach Justin I’ll manage.”

Chris laughed and Lance turned further to look at Chris, his green eyes bright in the half-light as he gave Chris a slow once-over. "Up to you then. Where do you want me?"

Joey snorted then and opened his door to get out, closing it behind him before he walked up to say hi to the two bodyguards, stretching.

Chris cocked his head to one side, thinking, and then grinned wickedly. "Inside would be good."

Lance laughed and said, "Okay, I can handle that. I’ll sit in the front seat, there’s more leg room." Lance turned back around and got out to go join Joey with Dre and Scott to smile and talk a moment.

"Are we really going to? In the truck?" Justin asked suddenly, looking at JC with a little grin.

JC smiled and asked, "I dunno, are you?"

Justin just stared at JC, completely shocked.

"Infant!" Chris crowed, cackling. "You should see your face!"

Lance opened the passenger side door then and got in, turning sideways in the seat to look at the three in the back as Joey got in and the two bodyguards went back to their truck. "Chris, what did you do?" Lance asked, trying not to grin as he took in JC’s innocent expression and Justin’s pole-axed look.

"Me?!" Chris said indignantly, then pointed at JC. "He did it, I just laughed!"

Lance looked at JC, who said, "I didn’t do anything, I just asked Justin a simple question. Five little words."

Joey buckled his seat belt and started the truck, reaching over to pat Lance’s knee and gesture towards the seatbelt.

Lance snorted as he buckled his seatbelt, still sitting sideways in the seat, and then looked at Justin, who was finally getting past looking shocked and going straight to grinning like a fool. "Alright," Lance asked, "are you gonna tell me?"

Justin grinned a little wider. "Josh’s gonna let me. In the truck. If I want to." He shifted in the seat to try to get more comfortable again, drawing a knowing grin from Chris.

"Like there’s any question," Lance said with a laugh. "I bet you’re seriously regretting the impulse to wear those particular jeans today though, even if they do show off your ass."

JC laughed, and then shut up quickly when Justin gave him a dirty look. "What’d I do, baby?" he asked with an innocent look that was ruined by the mischievous twinkle in his eyes. Lance chuckled and twisted back around to sit in his seat the right way then, watching as Joey pulled out into traffic and started the cruise control again.

Justin snorted and then grinned wickedly and turned on the seat, moving to straddle both of JC’s thighs as he said, "Nothing yet, but I think we can fix that."

"Sounds like fun." JC cupped Justin’s ass to pull him closer with a grin, leaning forward at the same time to nibble at Justin’s collarbone through his thin t-shirt. He kissed and nibbled his way up Justin’s throat before he lifted his head to kiss Justin hungrily, smiling into the kiss when Justin made a soft noise and slowly rocked his hips against him. JC slid a hand between their bodies after only a moment though, and Justin groaned and thrust harder.

Chris watched them for another minute, grinning, then crawled up into the front seat with Lance, reaching to unbutton Lance’s pants almost immediately as they kissed in the semi-darkness. Joey drove on, grinning and sparing an occasional glance at one couple or the other and thinking it was much more fun than playing Playstation or watching a movie like they had on long drives in the past.

 

 


	20. Chapter 20

  
~~~~20~~~~

 

Joey was still driving several hours later when Lance saw a sign saying it was ten miles to the first Myrtle Beach exit. He turned his head to look at the two in the back seat, shifting his lapful of warm, happy Chris slightly so he could turn enough to see them in the dim light. They were stretched out under Justin’s blanket, JC laying on top of Justin with both of them barely half dressed -- though on opposite halves -- as they kissed lazily.

"Guys," Lance said quietly, "We’ll be in Myrtle Beach in ten minutes or so."

Justin made a face as JC pulled away from the kiss with a sigh and moved off of him to sit on the edge of the seat, taking the blanket with him to wrap around himself. Justin, who was missing his shirt and had his jeans and underwear around his knees, hastily pulled up his boxers and jeans when JC took the blanket, fighting with the button fly while JC felt around on the seat and in the floor for his own jeans.

Justin finally got his jeans buttoned just as JC turned to him in exasperation. "Baby, what did you do with my pants?"

Chris lifted his head off Lance’s shoulder then to prop his chin on the back of the seat and watch them with a little grin.

"I dunno," Justin said with a shrug. "I just got rid of them, they were in my way."

Chris laughed, watching as Justin picked up his t-shirt out of the floor and started to put it on, not looking at all worried about JC’s pants even though JC was giving him a decidedly dirty look.

Joey and Lance exchanged an amused look as Joey reached to flick on the interior lights, making them all blink for a moment at the sudden brightness. “That help, C?” Joey asked, trying not to laugh at the look on JC’s face.

“Thanks, Joe.” JC scooted to one side of the seat, looking all around before he finally looked at Justin again and then eyed the half-open window behind Joey. "Justin, sweetheart, you know I love you but if you threw my jeans out that window I just might have to hurt you."

Chris laughed again and Lance tried hard not to grin as he said, “I think Joe would have noticed that, they’ve got to be back there somewhere. Under the seat, maybe?”

Justin looked at the window, then at JC, looking thoughtful for a minute or so before he shook his head. "Scoop’s right, I wasn’t even over there. C’mere you." He grabbed JC by the hips and moved him easily across the seat so that he was in the middle and laid him down with a grin, moving in for a kiss as Chris watched avidly and hoped the blanket would slip. "You were here," Justin said after a moment as he broke the kiss, grinning down at JC, "and I pulled them off, and tossed them..." Justin made as if to throw something towards the back of the truck as he went on, "there!" Justin gave JC another quick kiss and then leaned over the back of the seat as JC sat up again, accepting his jeans and underwear from Justin with a little grin.

Joey flicked off the interior light then and Chris whined, "But Joe, I wanted to watch him wriggle into those tight jeans the Infant got him to wear today!"

Joey snorted, shaking his head as Lance grinned and said, "Chris, let him get dressed in peace."

Chris took his chin off the back of the seat and looked at Lance then, pretending to pout. "But I wanted to know if he was that pretty all over."

Lance chuckled at the way JC’s eyes went a little wide at that, and then JC pulled the blanket up to completely cover him while got dressed, making Joey and Lance both laugh.

Justin sat and watched JC with a grin, teasing, "Josh, babe, he’s just messing with you. He’s seen it all before."

JC’s head popped back out from under the blanket after a couple of minutes and he gave Justin a little grin as he zipped up his jeans. "Yeah, but that doesn’t count, he didn’t really notice then."

Chris laughed at that. “Wanna bet?”

Lance was definitely smirking as he added, "Nobody could see you and not notice you’re beautiful, Josh, especially if you’re in the buff."

JC turned bright red and started folding the blanket that was still across his lap, pretending he hadn’t heard them.

Justin grinned at Lance. “And he’s mine.”

Lance’s smirk widened. “I can still enjoy the view, though.”

Chris squirmed a bit in Lance’s lap to get more comfortable. "James Lance Bass, have you been ogling our dear, shy Joshua?!"

Lance grinned wickedly. "Well, not precisely... I didn’t make much attempt not to see him though."

Joey chuckled at that while Chris grinned at Lance and asked, "Well? Tell! Details man, details!"

Lance looked at the road ahead of them a second, remembering JC and Justin in bed that morning, then looked back at Chris and said, "You have no idea exactly how gorgeous JC is until you see him naked. All long beautiful legs and lean muscle, and that perfect ass of his..." Lance made a little growly noise then, his expression quite wicked, and Chris laughed in delight.

JC was completely shocked – Lance had been _looking_ at him! – and just stared at the back of Lance’s seat until Justin said, "See! It’s not just me babe, you are perfect."

JC turned his head quickly to look at Justin, still wide-eyed. "No baby, I’m not. I have a big nose and funny-looking ears, and I’m just way too scrawny."

Justin made a face at JC as Lance and Joey exchanged surprised looks.

Chris stuck his head over the seat again to stare at JC. "You’ve got to be kidding, Josh. If it weren’t for Justin I would have been after your tight little ass years ago." Lance raised an eyebrow at that but didn’t comment as Chris went on, "You’re just plain beautiful, like a walking, talking work of art."

Lance grinned and nodded then, thinking that was pretty accurate. He could totally see JC as a painting by Monet or Van Gogh, beautiful even if you couldn’t quite make out everything that was going on.

JC’s face was flaming as he looked up at Chris. "A Picasso maybe. If anyone around here is beautiful it’s Lance, or Justin when he’s not too busy being sexy."

Justin gave JC a funny look, not sure if what JC had said about him was a compliment or an insult.

Chris snorted. "Joshua, have I ever lied to you?"

JC looked surprised and shook his head quickly. "No, of course not."

Chris smiled and reached over the back of Lance’s seat to touch his finger to the end of JC’s nose. "Then take my word that you are a beautiful, sexy man and Justin is very lucky that he owns you, heart and soul."

Joey and Lance both nodded.

Justin smiled at Chris and said quietly, "I think so, too."

JC looked thoughtfully at Chris until the older man turned and put his head back on Lance’s shoulder. JC scooted over closer to Justin then and curled up next to him with his feet in the seat, smiling as what they’d said really sank in. Knowing they thought he was beautiful, even though men weren’t precisely supposed to be, made all the flaws he could see in himself suddenly seem less important.

They rode along in silence for about five minutes before Lance gave Chris a squeeze and then said softly, "Cuddle-time is over, sweetheart. You gotta get in the back, we’ll be in town soon."

Chris made a face, then kissed Lance rather thoroughly before he climbed into the back to sit next to JC. "Okay, I’m in the back. Exactly where are we going? Didn’t you say dinner reservations were for ten?"

Lance turned in his seat to sit sideways again, one foot tucked up underneath him as he looked at the three in the back. "No, they’re for ten thirty. They reserved the outside deck for us at Pier 14."

JC sat up a little straighter and looked at him in surprise. "The whole outside deck? Man, that’s got to be costing us an arm and a leg!"

Lance chuckled. "Actually, it’s not. When Melinda was looking for a place that would give us some privacy, Pier 14’s owner, Warren, mentioned his three daughters are crazy about us and offered us the deck if we’d say hi to them and give an autograph to each of them. I called back the next day and told him we’d take the offer."

Lance didn’t mention that he’d had Melinda looking for a restaurant right on the ocean because he had been sure JC and Justin would love it. Chris, Joey, and Lance all enjoyed the ocean, but not quite so much as the two ex-mice.

They drove on for a while discussing places they passed until they finally turned onto Ocean Boulevard. JC suddenly leaned across Justin to put his window down, his eyes sparkling as he looked outside and took a deep breath. Justin grinned at him, knowing what was coming. Lance and Chris were both watching JC too, waiting for the traditional reaction, and sure enough JC spoke up as soon as a breeze of salt-laden air finally came in.

"Real water!" JC exclaimed delightedly. "We have _got_ to take a day to go to the beach, okay guys? I want to swim, and surf, and find some sharks teeth and—"

Lance laughed and interrupted him. "JC, I already have it covered. Our first two nights here are at the Hampton Inn right near the two best nightclubs and the Pavilion, then we’ve got two cottages with a private beach reserved out on Pawley’s Island. We’ll be there for the next two nights, with the option on the rest of the week if we like it there or the rooms at the Hampton for the rest of the week if we don’t. There’s not much out on the island, but it’s easy driving distance from there to anywhere along Ocean Boulevard so we can still go clubbing or to the mall or whatever even if we stay out there."

JC beamed at Lance. "Oh wow, thanks!"

Joey spoke up then, grinning. "Okay Scoop, play navigator... Where are we going?"

Lance turned back to face forward, looking around a minute at the street signs they passed before he grinned. "Well, for starters we’re going the wrong way unless we’re gonna check in at the hotel before we go eat. The restaurant is six blocks back the other way."

Joe snorted and started looking for a place to turn around. "It figures, and coppin’ a huey is illegal in South Carolina, right?"

Lance chuckled. "I think it’s illegal everywhere, Joe."

Joey flicked on his blinker and then the cell phone rang just as they turned, surprising Lance. He picked it up immediately, though he sounded a bit confused as he said, "Yeah, Lonnie, I’m awake. ... No, we’re turning around, Pier 14 is north—"

Lance broke off and leaned sideways to look at the sign they had just pulled in next to just as Chris started laughing his head off. JC and Justin both leaned over to see the sign too then, wondering why it was so fascinating, and then Justin started laughing too while JC made a face. Joey had pulled into the parking lot of a place called Derriere’s, which the sign proudly proclaimed was the only fully nude girly club on the beach.

Lance chuckled and spoke into the phone, "We didn’t even notice, or at least I didn’t." He looked over at Joey and saw him grinning like an idiot, then snorted. "Joe noticed though, he thinks it’s funny. ... Yeah, Lonnie, we’re still going to the restaurant first. Besides the fact we have no use for a girly bar—"

"Hey!" Chris exclaimed with a grin. "Some of us are still bi!" Justin laughed as JC grinned, sure that was not the brightest thing Chris could have said.

"Just a sec, Lonnie," Lance said, and then he turned to look at Chris as he spoke again, not bothering to try and cover the phone or anything. "Not if you’re sleeping in my bed you’re not, I don’t share with anyone outside the group."

JC’s eyes widened a bit at that, thinking it strongly implied Lance wouldn’t mind sharing with any of them, but Chris just grinned and said, "But going to a girly bar is like window shopping, babe. Looking is the fun part, not trying them on."

Justin laughed again as Joey chuckled and shook his head.

"You don’t even need to look, you have more than enough to wear," Lance said with a snort, trying not to laugh.

Lance looked over at Joey then, who grinned and said, "Don’t look at me, I was just turning this boat around. You know I’m all about the Bass booty."

Lance snorted again, and then put the phone to his ear to hear Lonnie chuckling. "As I was saying before Chris’ hormones overloaded his brain, there’s not really time to do anything else before dinner except go walk around a bit there by Pier 14. ... Yeah, that’s what I figured too, and this time of night on a Sunday that oughta be pretty safe." Lance listened a moment then grinned. "Good... Okay, see you in a few."

Lance hung up the phone and then looked at Joey. "Well, what are you waiting for?"

Joey grinned. “For the boss to tell me to get moving.” He started the truck back out into the admittedly light traffic, this time heading north.

Chris was quiet for a block or so, then looked over at Lance and said, "You know I was just kidding, right?"

JC and Justin exchanged a look and settled back to watch, hoping Chris wasn’t about to get himself even deeper in dutch. Chris had a habit of digging the hole even deeper whenever he tried to get out of trouble with someone. It was one of his most lamented talents, and one of the reasons he didn’t let many people exert enough control over him to make him feel bad for upsetting them.

Lance turned to look at Chris, grinning. "Chris, sweetheart, if I had thought you were serious I would have had Joey stop. Scott or Mark would have happily kept you company, and there’s an extra room next to ours that I reserved just so we’d have some privacy."

Chris’ eyes widened and he spluttered at that while Joey, who was watching him in the rear-view mirror, chuckled. "You may have been playing, Chris," Joey said, "but _Lance_ wasn’t. How long has it been since you saw me go to a girly bar?"

Chris looked thoughtful a moment, then raised his eyebrows and grinned as he realized it had been more than two years ago. "Damn, Scoop tamed the Joe-bear. I’m impressed."

"He’s tamed you too, Critter. You just don’t know it yet," Joey replied with a grin. "We’re both thoroughly whipped."

Lance looked at Joey and grinned smugly. "Yeah, but think of the fringe benefits."

Joey positively leered at Lance. "Oh I do, baby boy, I do."

JC laughed and Chris gave him a funny look, then grinned and asked, "JC, how do you feel about Justin looking at other people?"

Justin’s eyebrows went up at that, and he looked expectantly at JC. He was curious whether or not JC thought he would, but not really worried about how JC might react to the prospect. The first person Justin ever looked at and wanted was JC, and he had remained the only person Justin wanted for a very long time. Justin saw no reason that might ever change.

"Why would he? He loves me," JC said, smiling, and Justin grinned.

Chris snorted and said half under his breath, "Okay, Josh is a sap, we know this, I should have known that would be his answer." He looked past JC at Justin and asked in a more normal tone, "How do you feel about JC looking? Or about the fact he’s been with other people and you haven’t?"

Justin shrugged. "It was just sex, it’s not like he loved them or something. As for looking at other people now, he wouldn’t. Josh isn’t like that." Justin smiled at JC, who smiled right back at him.

"If it was okay with you for him to have sex, why didn’t you ever do it?" Chris asked Justin, curious. He couldn’t imagine staying a virgin until he was Justin’s age, especially not if he was someone as gorgeous and talented as Justin, and would have said it was impossible if he hadn’t known Justin did just that.

Justin shrugged. "I never really wanted anyone else."

Chris stared. "Justin, you _can_ _’_ _t_ be serious. You’ve never found _anyone_ else you wanted to have sex with besides JC? Nobody at all?"

Justin smiled. "Why would I want anything less than the best?"

JC grinned and kissed Justin’s cheek. "Thank you, baby."

Lance looked at Chris then and saw the surprised look still on his face and laughed. "Chris, just accept that he’s never going to give a mere mortal a second look and quit trying to figure it out. You know JC and Justin are a law unto themselves, they always have been."

Joey nodded, flipping on the blinker again, this time to turn into the nearly empty Pier 14 parking lot. "Yup, and then get it through your squirrelly little brain that you belong to us and we don’t share." Joey pulled into an empty parking place and turned to grin at Chris as he turned off the truck.

JC and Justin began putting their shoes back on as Chris spoke up, grinning. "Sounds good to me. The not looking thing will take some getting used to, though. Looking is about all I’ve done for a while. If I mess up you can slap me or something."

Lance unbuckled his seatbelt and turned in his seat again so that he could see the three in the back seat, grinning at Chris. "I will, don’t worry. I’m a vindictive little bitch."

The other four all laughed at that and Lance was about to say something else when Lonnie lightly tapped the hood of the truck to get their attention and let them know they could get out.

They did, stretching as they moved towards where Lonnie stood, and as soon as they were all at the front of the truck Lonnie spoke up. "Okay guys, James is inside. There aren’t many people here, and the girl at the desk says she has orders to let you in whenever you get here and that you can stay until you want to leave, so dinner now is an option. Scott and Dre are checking the beach right now and Mark is checking the pier, but the girl already told James that both are usually deserted this time of night on a Sunday, which means it’s safe to go for a walk if you want. There’s about half an hour until your reservations, which are at closing time for the restaurant so there won’t be anyone inside to bother you."

JC gave Lance a huge grin but didn’t say anything, sure he didn’t have to, and Lance chuckled. "Everyone agree with JC?" he asked the others, and he wasn’t surprised when they nodded. They all knew that if JC had a chance to play on the beach or go eat, the beach won hands down.

Chris spoke up with a grin. "I don’t care what we do just so long as I don’t have to sit for a while."

Joey chuckled and Lance looked back at Lonnie. "The beach it is, we’ll be ready to go in a minute."

“Gotcha, boss.” Lonnie nodded and turned away to give them an illusion of privacy while he called James on the headset to let the restaurant staff know when to expect them. Reservations for the group seemed like a small thing until you thought about the bodyguards who would also need to eat, and the fact most restaurants closed the kitchen well before closing time. If nothing else, Lonnie figured the cooks and the wait staff needed to know their plans.

Lance looked around at Joey, Chris, Justin, and JC, grinning when he saw JC’s hair. "Josh, I have a brush in my bag that you really need to borrow."

"I do?" JC lifted a hand quickly to run it through his hair, messing it up ever more while the others laughed.

Lance went get into his bag from behind the seats, and was on his way back with the brush when he noticed a couple come around the corner of the building and stop short. "Oh my God," they heard the girl say to her boyfriend, "do you know who that _is_?!"

Lance handed JC the brush and smiled politely at the girl, then watched as JC brushed his hair, glad he didn’t have any gel. Lance thought it looked great the way it naturally fell in soft waves around JC’s face, and saw no reason for JC to ‘tame it’ by adding a bunch of gunk to it.

Lonnie turned and looked the girl’s boyfriend over and then went back to talking into the pickup for the ear monitors his team wore. He was sure that Joey or even Lance could handle any problem they might have with that particular guy, so he didn’t bother moving closer to do the looming bodyguard bit. The guys seldom had the luxury of not having a bodyguard looming nearby, and part of the reason for their vacation was to have a bit of that freedom. He was going to give it to them any time he thought it was safe to.

The boyfriend just looked at the group for about a minute before he replied to what the girl had said. "Aren’t they those guys you make me listen to all the time? Backdoor Boys or something like that?"

The guys all busted up laughing at that and the girl swatted her boyfriend as she said, "No, you idiot, that’s ‘Nsync! They are way more talented than Backstreet." She pulled her boyfriend forward and said to the guys, "You’re like, the best group ever!"

JC handed the brush back to Lance, who grinned and headed back the truck to put it away and get one of the signed singles he carried just for such an occasion while the others said hi to the girl and did the introductions. Handling a lone fan would be easy after the hordes of fans they had fought the last few months.

Five minutes later Lance, Joey, and Chris were walking together down the well-lit stairs towards the beach below, watching as JC hurried down ahead of them with Justin right at his heels. JC finally reached the sand then and looked over his shoulder at Justin to grin at him before he started to run towards the distant figure of one of their bodyguards, laughing as he called, "I bet you can’t catch me!" The other three laughed and watched as Justin started off after him at a run, not bothering to answer JC as he concentrated his energy on outrunning him instead.

Joey, Lance and Chris started down to the water as soon as they reached the bottom of the steps, turning as they reached the damp sand of the shoreline and then walking towards where JC and Justin were playing, Joey walking nearest the water and Lance in the middle. Chris reached quietly to take Lance’s hand after a few minutes, smiling at him before he looked past Lance and Joey out over the water at a shrimp boat going slowly by. Lance returned the smile and kept walking, watching JC and Justin as they dodged back and forth across the sand a hundred yards or so ahead of them.

Chris suddenly said, "This is beautiful," a few minutes later, causing Lance and Joey to both look at him in surprise. Chris saw their expressions and asked, "What? Can’t I appreciate a nice walk along a moonlit beach?"

Lance smiled as Joey said with a grin, "I’ve been waiting for you to take off doing cartwheels or something, Critter, and you’re over there getting all sappy on us. I guess all those songs about walks on the beach bringing out the romantic in anyone are true."

Lance chuckled at the look on Chris’ face and squeezed his hand. "Yeah, maybe we oughta take you for a moonlit stroll more often." Joey laughed, nodding.

Chris thought about that a moment and would have said something if JC hadn’t come pelting up, laughing as he gasped out, "Guys, help! Justin’s gonna throw me in the water!" JC ducked around them so they were between him and Justin, who came running up to stop in front of Lance with a big grin, not even breathing hard.

"Justin, you are not throwing him in the water," Lance said, trying not to laugh. "We don’t have anything for him to change into."

Justin grinned a little wider. "That’s pretty much the whole idea, Scoop. He looks really good naked and wet."

JC blushed and exclaimed, "Justin!"

Joey and Chris both started laughing at that, but Lance just grinned as he said, "I’m sure he does, but we haven’t had supper yet and he’s not going in a restaurant all wet. You can play with him when we get to our suite, then nobody but us will see him, okay?"

JC made a face, finally aware that Lance enjoyed it when Justin managed to talk him out of his clothes since Lance had made it obvious enough that even JC noticed. Justin wanted him naked often enough as it was, and he wished Lance would stop encouraging him.

Justin looked thoughtful a moment and then nodded. "Okay, I can handle that," he said, then he looked at JC with a grin and said, "You can come out now."

JC looked at Justin over Lance’s shoulder. "I dunno if I should. You might decide to chase me again or something."

Justin grinned a little wider. "Hey, you started it, but I’ll behave now."

JC stuck his tongue out at Justin and moved over behind Chris. "You promise?"

Justin nodded and moved over by Chris to hold out his hand. "C’mon babe, walk with me. I promise I’ll be good."

“Alright.” JC smiled and reached to take the offered hand, falling into step next to Justin as they all started down the beach again, occasionally talking but mostly just enjoying the scenery and the company.

They’d been walking in near silence for a while when Lance happened to glance back and saw how far they had walked. Dre was the only one keeping pace with them, and they were a long way down the beach from where they had started. "We should start back," he said quietly, glancing at his watch. "It’s getting late."

Joey shrugged and turned to go back, Lance and Chris falling in on either side of him while JC and Justin brought up the rear. After half a dozen steps Chris and Lance exchanged a grin behind Joey’s back and then Chris took Joey’s arm while Lance put his arm around Joey’s waist, leaning in close. Joey chuckled and wrapped an arm around Lance, giving him a squeeze as he felt Chris lean close against his other side. JC grinned at Justin and moved closer to slip his arm around him just as Justin lifted his arm to wrap it around JC’s shoulders, smiling back at him before they followed the other three back down the beach towards the lighted pier.

Dre waited for them to go by him again, fully intending to stay at a distance as usual, and was surprised when Chris smiled at him and said, "Why don’t you walk with us?"

Dre smiled at him. "You sure, boss?"

Chris nodded as Joey grinned said, "Yeah, c’mon, there’s no reason to do the discrete bodyguard bit, we’re just walking."

“Alright.” Dre chuckled and joined them, walking along a few feet from Chris as he idly scanned the deserted beach, keeping an eye open for any possible company even though he hadn’t even seen anyone since they left the stairs.

The walk back was uneventful until Dre spoke quietly, making them all glance his way. "Guys, James says there’s a group of teenagers coming down. He says they don’t look like the type to listen to your music, but they’re headed this way."

JC slipped his hand out of Justin’s back pocket then, moving it up to rest more casually on his waist as Chris let go of Joey and Lance reluctantly pulled away from him a little bit.

"Thanks, Dre," Chris said quietly, giving Dre a quick grin before he looked ahead to watch the group coming down the stairs.

From that distance there looked to be four guys and two girls, and all of them were punked out in leather and denim with brightly dyed hair. One of them was carrying a boombox on his shoulder that was playing hard rock just loud enough they were beginning to hear it. James was right that they didn’t look like the type to listen to pop music, but they were young enough that they would probably recognize the group anyway. Jive’s marketing team had been very thorough and concentrated most on teenagers.

A few minutes later the teens passed Lonnie where he stood on the landing about halfway up the stairway and then the music stopped abruptly as Dre spoke again, sounding amused. "Lonnie says they’ve figured out you’re somebody because of us, but they think you’re too ‘pretty’ to be a metal band. One of them suggested you might be LFO."

The five of them started laughing then, drawing odd looks from the teenagers as the guys reached the bottom of the stairs. Lance pulled away from Joey a little more as they moved into the light, and they all grinned at the kids while they waited for them to get off the stairway.

One of the group of teens, a tall guy with blue streaked hair and tattoos who looked to be eighteen or so, stopped to look at them more closely when he reached the bottom of the steps. His eyes went wide after only a moment and then he exclaimed, "Dude! That’s JC and that kid he sings with, the Timbertwit! My sister worships these dudes!"

Joey and Chris laughed as Justin gave the guy a dirty look and JC tried not to grin. ‘Timbertwit’ was a nickname that Justin hated thoroughly and blamed completely on Chris, even though Chris had only called him that once. Somehow other people had picked it up and it surfaced occasionally to tweak Justin’s ego, usually when he least expected it.

One of the girls, a blond with green streaks in her hair, leaned past the blue-haired guy to get a good look at JC and Justin, then laughed and shoved at the one who had spoken first. "Oh Ronnie, it is so not them!" She looked back over at JC and gave him a rather obvious once over as she went on, "This hottie makes that Chasez guy look like a total dawg, and besides, the kid went skinhead and this guy has hair." JC blushed, smiling, and Justin grinned at the girl.

Ronnie shook his head vehemently, blue hair flipping around in a blur. "No, it’s them! I walk by them like, _every_ _single day_ , I’d recognize them anywhere! Trixie has her room fucking _wallpapered_ with these guys, especially the curly dude."

Lance and Joey both chuckled as Chris looked over at Justin with a grin. Chris was going to have ammunition for a week from this kid, he was sure of it.

The other girl – her hair was bright purple – rolled her eyes and looked at Chris, figuring he looked like the oldest. "Ignore him, Ronnie’s not wrapped too tight. Who are you guys really?"

Chris shrugged and grinned at her. "Nobody important."

The oldest of the group, a pink-haired guy who looked twenty-five or so, laughed. "Nobody my ass, man. Even Fred Durst doesn’t drag this much beef to the beach! Who are you, O-Town or something?"

"God no!" Justin said, making a face. "We are _not_ O-Town, those guys are lame."

Ronnie spoke up again, more insistently. "Jake man, I’m telling you these are those sink guys!"

Jake gave Ronnie a tolerant look. "Ronnie, if this was ‘Nsync there would be a hundred girls your sister’s age hanging around screaming, _including_ your sister." He looked at Joey, Lance, and Chris and then at JC and Justin, his eyes stopping on JC for a moment as he cocked his head to one side and looked at him a little harder. "Still, you guys do look a lot like them, especially you and you." He gestured to JC and Lance. "You two could pass as them if you fucked up your hair and put on some flamey clothes."

Chris couldn’t stand it anymore and started laughing, hiding behind Joey’s shoulder when Lance gave him a dirty look. Lance turned to look back at Jake, his eyes narrowed slightly as he said, "The clothes are for the stage, I do _not_ have such abysmal taste."

JC gave Lance a dirty look, thinking that answer implied he was the one with the bad taste, but he didn’t say anything.

Joey chuckled and patted Lance’s shoulder. "Down boy." Lance made a face at Joey but Joey just grinned at him, then looked over at the group of teenagers. "We are ‘Nsync, but you’re welcome to not believe it, we won’t mind. Hiding from the teenies is much easier if people don’t believe we’re us."

Jake laughed and Ronnie turned to the green-haired girl, the light glinting off the piercing in his tongue as he stuck it out at her. "Nyahh... Told you so!"

"Guys?" Lonnie called from halfway up the steps then, causing them all to look up.

"Yeah, Lonnie?" Chris replied, still grinning.

"It’s after ten thirty," Lonnie said, "you’re running late."

"Thanks, we’re coming," Lance called up to him with a quick grin, then looked at the kids and raised an eyebrow at them. "We have to go. Would you like our autographs, just in case we’re telling the truth?"

Ronnie nodded quickly but the others just shrugged, not really caring one way or the other. "Yeah dude, please," Ronnie said. "My baby sister would never forgive me if I didn’t."

Lance grinned at him. "Come on up with us to the truck and I’ll give you a signed single for her, how’s that?"

Ronnie beamed. "Dude! You’re so cool!"

Jake snorted and started off towards the pier, waving. "Catch up to us later, Ronnie. Nice meeting you guys, whoever the hell you are."

Lance gave Ronnie a wry grin and gestured to the stairs. "After you."

Ronnie turned and started up the stairs quickly and then the guys followed him with Dre and Scott bringing up the rear. Ten minutes later, Ronnie was headed back towards the beach with a signed single and the impression they were headed home to Florida, and after Lance grabbed his bag the guys all started towards the front of the restaurant with Lonnie, Dre, and Scott to go eat.

James sat on the hood of their truck and watched them go before he settled back comfortably against the windshield, waiting for Mark to get back with the other Expedition and his pizza. He hated seafood and they needed somebody to watch the truck, so it had worked out pretty good as far as he was concerned.

  



	21. Chapter 21

 

~~~~21~~~~

 

The first thing the group noticed when they walked in was that the sound system on the stage was playing their own music, the first US album that none of them had heard very much in a year or more. They exchanged glances, grinning, and started for the dance floor with JC and Justin both already moving to the beat of ‘ _I Just Wanna Be With You_ ’. They didn’t see the table full of kids sitting and staring at them as they made their way through the restaurant’s deserted tables; if they had they probably wouldn’t have gone to play so quickly.

Just as they got to the dance floor the song changed, and the guys all made faces as they paused facing the stage to see what would be next. When JC’s voice started singing, " _Soon as the stars shine, I_ _’_ _m gonna make you mine, oh baby_ ," Lance put his backpack on the stage. They all moved into position to start the choreography for ‘ _You Got It_ ’ then, singing along and making faces at each other when they forgot steps or flubbed up the words. It was obvious to anyone watching that they were having a blast acting like complete goofballs, but they still somehow managed to keep their vocals on track when they weren’t laughing and even did a fairly good approximation of the original choreography.

Lonnie watched them play with a tolerant grin, standing near the door to the restaurant next to an older balding man with a beard who was watching the table full of delighted kids. When the song ended the kids at the table in the corner started clapping loudly and the guys visibly snapped back to reality, looking around in surprise as they instinctively moved closer together and toned their happy grins down a bit. They spotted the table full of adolescents – seven girls and five boys between ten and eighteen or so – almost immediately and gave them quick bows as Chris grinned and said, "Thank you! For an encore we could do something we all remember the steps to, if you kids can find somebody to play the music for us."

Chris looked expectantly at the kids and wasn’t at all surprised when a boy who looked about sixteen hopped up and said, "I’ll do it! What do you want me to play?"

The guys exchanged looks and Joey suggested, "’ _Girlfriend_ ’?"

JC had moved back from the others while Chris was talking and was looking around at the dance floor, grinning. "There’s enough room for that one, or ‘ _Pop_ ’, or any of the older songs since we had smaller stages then."

Justin shrugged and looked at Joey, Chris, and Lance as JC walked back over to join them. "I don’t care," Justin said, "I can do any of them just as easy."

Lance snorted. "We knew that, but not everyone has you and JC’s perfect memory for dance moves. I’ve forgotten half the steps for the old stuff. Why don’t we ask the kids what they’d like us to do?"

Chris grinned at him. "Good idea!" he said, then turned to look at the excited table full of kids and said, "What song would you like for us to do?"

The kids all started talking at once, suggesting songs, and the oldest girl called out over all of them, "Shut up everyone!" When they all looked at her in surprise she grinned and said, "We’ll vote. Mr. Fatone suggested ‘ _Girlfriend_ ’... Who’d like to see them do it?" Four hands -- the three boys and the oldest girl -- went up quickly, and after a moment the girl made a face at them and said, "Okay, how about ‘ _Pop_ ’?" Five hands went up that time, including two who’d already voted, and she said, "Oh now come _on_ , you can only vote _once_! Charlie, Mike, pick a song!"

The two young men, a red-head who might have been sixteen or so going by his looks and a taller blond who looked to be around eighteen, exchanged a look. "Mike, do you want to watch what I do?" the red-head asked, looking at his friend.

"Yeah, Char... Them!" the blond said with a big grin, making Justin and Chris both laugh.

The oldest girl rolled her eyes and said, "Okay, so neither of you need to vote." Mike and Charlie shrugged and grinned at her, not at all upset, and she looked at everyone else a long moment, then over at Chris, giving him a wry grin. "We love all your music, so I think anything you want to do is fine with us. If we vote, we’ll be here all night."

The guys grinned at her and then looked at each other. "Okay," Lance said, smiling. "How about we just sing for them? We haven’t done anything acapella in a while..." He looked over at the kids. "Would that be okay?"

There were a lot of nods and bright happy smiles from the table as one of the two older girls clutched the arm of the boy next to her and whispered loudly, "Oh my God, Lance is even more gorgeous in person."

Lance heard her and blushed while the other guys grinned, and then Chris poked him and said, "Hear that, Scoop? You’re gorgeous!" Lance shoved him, grinning even though he was still a bit red-faced.

JC spoke up then, grinning. "Why don’t we sing ‘ _Something Like You_ ’ for them? It’s a good one."

Justin grinned at JC and said, "Yeah, or ‘ _Selfish_ ’, it’s good too."

Chris rolled his eyes and looked at Lance and Joey. "I’d rather do ‘ _Something Like You_ ’, we just did ‘ _Selfish_ ’ last night. What do you two say?"

Joey shrugged, smiling. "I don’t care, both are good."

Lance nodded. "Yeah, they are... I think I agree with Chris though; it has been a while since we sang ‘ _Something Like You_ ’."

Chris grinned. "It’s settled then!"

JC moved over next to Chris with a grin then as Justin stepped to the opposite side of their impromptu half circle, next to Joey. The table full of kids got really quiet then as JC started snapping, then the other guys picked up the rhythm as JC began to move slightly to the music only he could hear. After five beats Justin started singing softly, looking straight across at JC.

" _Yeah... Ohh... So many times, I thought I held it in my hands, but just like grains of sand, love slipped through my fingers. So many nights, I asked the Lord above, please make me lucky enough, to find a love that lingers."_ Chris, Joey, and Lance joined him there, not singing really but ‘ooohing’ in the background as Justin went on, " _Something keeps telling me, that you could be my answered prayer, you must be heaven sent_ ," and the other three joined him to sing, " _I swear_."

Justin started the chorus then, singing lead while the other four sang harmony with him in such a way that his vocals remained distinct above theirs. " _Cause something happens when you look at me I forget to speak, something happens when you kiss my mouth my knees get so weak. Could it be true this is what God has meant for me?_ _‘_ _Cause baby I can_ _’_ _t believe, something like you has happened to me_." They all paused a beat and Justin went on alone, " _Yeah... Something like you... oooh..."_

JC picked up three beats after Justin let his voice fade, his eyes closed and a soft smile on his face. " _Girl in your eyes, I feel your fire burn_ ," Chris and Lance echoed softly, " _Feel your fire burn_ ," in the background as JC sang, " _Oh your secrets I will learn_ ," and Justin joined him, with the other three echoing parts as they finished them, _"even if it takes forever. With you by my side, I can do anything._ " JC went on alone from there with Joey, Lance, and Chris harmonizing in the background until they joined him for the very end of the verse. " _I don_ _’_ _t care what tomorrow brings, as long as we_ _’_ _re together. My heart is telling me, that you could be, my meant to be, I know it more each time we touch_."

They all started the second chorus together after a single beat, singing, " _Cause something happens when you look at me I forget to speak, something happens when you kiss my mouth my knees get so weak. Could it be true this is what God has meant for me?_ " and then JC went on alone, " _Cause baby I can_ _’_ _t believe, something like you has happened to me."_

Two beats after JC finished the chorus Justin started singing with Joey, Chris, and Lance carrying the melody and echoing each line. " _Something magical... Something spiritual... Something stronger than the two of us alone, yeah.._." Justin sang, then watched as JC picked up without a pause with, " _Something physical... Something undeniable_ ," then JC and Justin went on together, " _Nothing like anything, that I_ _’_ _ve ever known..."_

They all immediately went into the third chorus then with JC singing high descant above and around the others’ vocals, seeming to pick what word he’d echo at random. " _Cause something happens when you look at me I forget to speak, something happens when you kiss my mouth my knees get so weak. Could it be true this is what God has meant for me?"_ and then Justin went on alone, " _Cause baby I can_ _’_ _t believe, no..."_ Chris, Joey, and Lance sang softly, " _Something like you_ ," and then JC picked up, " _Something like you_ ," and was echoed by Chris, Joey, and Lance again before Justin went on alone, " _That something like you... could happen to me_." JC sang softly, " _Something happened, ohh..."_ and then he and Justin finished together, " _Can_ _’_ _t believe that you happened to me, yeah..."_

JC had sung most of the song with his eyes closed, as usual, but Justin had watched JC’s face through almost the whole thing with a smile that JC returned when he opened his eyes for the last two lines. Justin hadn’t made any attempt at all to not look like he was madly in love with JC as far as Lance could tell, and he and JC both had sung with such obvious feeling that Lance was glad they never stood where they could see each other when they did this song in concert. The way they had just sung it, it was even more obviously a love duet than ‘ _Selfish_ ’, and Jive would have had screaming conniptions. Lance looked over at Chris and they exchanged a look that let Lance know Chris had seen it too, so Lance hoped the kids would be too awed by seeing them perform to notice.

There was a moment of silence after the song ended before the kids all started clapping and gushing over how great that was, and the guys all grinned at them and took bows as the balding man who’d been standing by Lonnie started over.

"Okay kids," the man called, "you got to see them sing _and_ dance, now let them eat in peace! Charlie, Mike, you two promised to help out tonight if I let you stay, so you can start busing the tables that are left. Kelsey, Michelle, Shan; you’re needed to help out in the kitchen. The rest of you need to start thinking about going home, okay?"

There was a chorus of groans but the kids all started moving, most heading towards the cashier’s table near the main door to use the phone.

The bald man turned to the group and smiled at them. "Thank you. This really meant a lot to them, I know. I’m Warren, the owner. I believe I spoke to one of you on the phone. Lance?"

Lance smiled and nodded. "Yes sir, that was me. Sorry we were late, we didn’t realize we had walked so far down the beach."

Warren shook his head, smiling. "Don’t worry about it, you’ve more than made up for it by indulging them with a private performance! We’ve got the outside deck cleared and ready, so you’re welcome to head out there as soon as you’re ready." Warren noticed his oldest daughter Kelsey standing nearby then, with all the others – except Charlie and Mike, who were in the kitchen – watching from the cashier’s desk and looking hopeful. "What d’you need, Kelsey?" Warren asked.

Kelsey blushed as they all looked over at her but she didn’t falter as she said quickly, "The others wanted me to come ask if you would sign an autograph for each of them so that we could prove we saw you. Nobody is going to believe us."

Chris and Joey both chuckled as JC laughed and said, "Sure, we don’t mind a bit."

Justin nodded quickly, grinning, and Lance said, "I might even be able to give each of you a signed single, let me look in my bag." He turned to walk over to the stage, and after glancing at each other the guys followed him except for JC.

JC looked at Kelsey and her friends and said, "I’m sure Lance has pens in his bag, so get whatever you want us to sign and come over there, and we’ll be happy to." He looked at Warren with a smile and said, "That okay with you, sir?"

Warren nodded quickly. "Certainly! Whatever you’d like to do is fine."

JC grinned at him and then went to join the other four at the stage followed by Kelsey and all of the other kids except Michelle, who went to the cash register to look for some paper.

Lance looked up as JC hopped up to sit on the stage next to him, then kept digging in his backpack, setting out singles as he found them. He’d already taken out three copies of ‘ _Selfish_ _’_ and two of ‘ _Girlfriend_ _’_ , and after another moment he added two signed copies of ‘ _Selfish_ _’_ and then pulled out three t-shirts that were folded up around three more ‘ _Selfish_ _’_ singles. He suddenly grinned and switched to the outer pocket then and came up with four copies of the ‘ _Celebrity_ ’ album, already signed.

Chris laughed and said, "Scoop, dude, you carry all of that around with you?"

Lance looked up with a grin. "I try to always have a few in here, but I put the t-shirts and three of the singles in here on the bus this morning so I wouldn’t forget them for tonight." He reached into the smallest outside pocket of his bag and pulled out a handful of Sharpie pens, offering them to the others. "Okay guys, start signing. We were out of signed singles this morning, so there’s at least six here you have to sign."

They each took a pen and then Chris picked up a CD, turning to look expectantly at the kids and grin as he said, "Okay, who’s first?"

The kids looked at Kelsey, who had insisted ahead of time she was to be the boss for the night if they wanted to come. Kelsey pointed to the youngest girl, grinning at the guys as she said, "This is my cousin, Lisa. Her mom is already on the way, so she can go first."

Chris gave Lisa a bright smile. "Well, come on over here, Lisa, meet the guys. I’m Chris."

"I know," Lisa said as she stepped forward with a shy smile, watching wide-eyed as Chris signed her CD and then passed it to Justin with a grin, urging her to go talk to him.

Chris picked up the next unsigned CD and gestured to another of the younger girls. "You next... What’s your name?" The girl blushed and stammered out her name, and he signed the CD with a grin and a flourish before going on to the next.

Michelle ran up then and handed Kelsey a pad of paper. "Found it!" she said happily, almost bouncing in place, and Kelsey hushed her.

Ten minutes later all of the kids had signed singles except Mike and Charlie, who were busy, and the owner’s daughters, who each had a t-shirt and a copy of the Celebrity CD.

"I don’t know how to thank you boys," Warren said as he escorted out to the deck to let them pick a table.

JC walked straight over to sit down near the railing at a table that was set for six where he could see the ocean below, and the others followed him without protest. "No thanks are necessary, sir," Justin said with a smile for Warren as he took a seat next to JC. "We’re grateful for somewhere to eat that we won’t have to worry about being mobbed."

JC nodded and looked away from the ocean as he said, "Yeah, and getting to eat out here by the ocean is a major plus. We should be thanking you."

Joey and Chris both nodded as they sat down across from JC and Justin, leaving Lance the choice of sitting at the end between Chris and JC or the end between Justin and Joey. Lance only thought a moment before sitting between Chris and JC. He could prevail upon JC to control Justin if necessary, and he was sure that Joey wouldn’t start any trouble, but Chris might well want to play before the meal was through.

Warren offered them menus once they were seated. "Well, you’re quite welcome, and any time you’re in town I’ll be happy to do the same. My girls are crazy about you, and from what I can see you’re five nice young men. I’d be glad to give you a safe haven, as it were. I’ll send the boys out to take your order in a few minutes, okay?"

They all nodded and Warren gave them a smile and went back inside, leaving them alone with nothing but the sound of the surf since Lonnie and the others had decided to eat inside.

Justin looked over at the glass doors leading outside, craning his neck as if he was trying to see something.

"Justin," Lance said quickly, "don’t even think about it. Assume they can see us, okay?"

Chris nodded at that, but Joey just picked up his menu, content to let the others handle it.

Justin made a face at Lance and picked up his own menu as JC spoke softly enough nobody would hear him more than a few feet away. "Baby, you know we have to be good in public. Those doors are _not_ locked, and they are _glass_."

Justin gave JC a pout and said just as quietly, "But I wanted a kiss."

JC smiled at him. "Wait until we’re in the truck, okay? It won’t be that long. Now what are you eating?"

Justin made a face. "You’re changing the subject, but okay." He looked at the menu a moment and then said, "I think I want the variety plate, that ‘ _Seafood Treasures_ _’_ thing. What are you gonna get? And don’t you dare pick one of the kids plates, you need a whole meal."

Lance chuckled and shook his head as Chris grinned and said, "You like finishing his food, don’t you?"

Justin looked surprised. "No, I just want him to really eat. No matter how much is on his plate he’ll try to leave at least half of it, so the more food he starts out with the better."

Joey and Chris both laughed and Lance said, "Justin, you don’t see the point here. If you let him get whatever he wants he might actually eat it all."

Justin snorted. "I’ve been making him eat for years, Scoop. He’s not gonna clean his plate, you can bet on it."

"How much do you want to bet?" JC asked suddenly, looking slightly annoyed.

Justin turned his head to look at him, raising his eyebrows. "Babe, I’m not gonna take your money. We both know you can’t eat a full plate of food."

Chris and Lance exchanged grins, thinking they knew what Justin was up to. Telling JC he couldn’t do something in that condescending tone was a sure way to see he _did_ do it. It was how Justin had gotten JC to do a multitude of things JC would never have considered otherwise, from riding roller coasters to trying the orange Tabasco sauce.

JC narrowed his eyes at Justin. "We don’t have to bet money. We can bet something else, favors or something."

Justin suddenly looked a bit more interested, a wicked twinkle lighting up his eyes. "I’ll bet you can’t eat a whole dinner if whoever wins gets to ask the other one to do one thing, anything they want." Justin wasn’t about to turn down a chance to get JC to do anything he wanted again; the hot tub was a lot of fun and he was sure he could come up with something else just as interesting.

JC looked at Justin for a minute, wondering what Justin had up his sleeve and suddenly not as sure he wanted to agree to the bet. "Just one thing?" he asked. "You’re not gonna try and go for a whole day or something?"

Lance chuckled as Justin grinned and said, "One thing is plenty."

JC looked thoughtful another moment and then suddenly nodded, grinning. "Okay, you’re on. I almost always do whatever you want anyway, so it’s not like I can really lose."

Lance and Chris both laughed at Justin’s surprised look.

Joey looked amused as he said, "I wasn’t sure you’d even realized that, C."

JC snorted and then grinned at Joey. "I’m not a complete ditz, Joe."

Justin was looking at JC like he’d just told them he wanted to dye his hair pink or something.

JC picked up the menu to look at it then, missing the look Chris gave him as Chris asked, "If you realize you do it then why do you?"

JC looked over his menu at Justin, who was still looking surprised, then smiled at Chris. "Why not? It’s not like it’s all one-sided, Justin will do anything I ask him to. Besides, he’s adorable when he’s being all smug because he won."

Lance chuckled and shook his head as he opened his own menu, thinking that maybe JC wasn’t quite so far out in outer space as they’d thought.

Justin finally found his voice. "So, uhm, did you take the bet or not?"

JC nodded, smiling. "Yeah baby, I’ll take the bet. I think I’ll have the ‘ _Chicken Crustacean_ ’ with rice and a salad."

Justin smiled back at JC. "Good. You’ll understand if I say I hope I lose, right?"

JC laughed and nodded. "Yeah, I do."

They heard the door then and looked up to see Mike and Charlie both walk out, the tall blond carrying a tray with a pitcher of water and glasses while Charlie carried a big basket of what looked like hush puppies. Mike set down the tray he carried at the unused end of their table and smiled at them before he began pouring glasses of water.

Charlie sat the basket in the middle of the table, grinning. "These are mozzarella sticks. The cook thought you might like them while you wait for your meal."

JC grinned and took one. "Thanks! I love mozzarella sticks." Joey and Chris each took one too, exchanging grins and wondering how many JC would eat before he realized he still had to eat his supper to win the bet.

Lance grinned at JC’s reaction, then looked up at Charlie again. "We’re ready to order whenever y’all are."

Charlie pulled a pad out of his back pocket with a flourish and slipped the pen out from behind his ear, settling into waiter mode. "Ready! Mike’s going to handle your drinks. We have a full soda fountain plus a wine list and several brands of beer if you’d rather that, as well as coffee, sweet tea, plain tea and of course water."

Mike grinned at them but didn’t say anything, picking up the now-empty tray he’d brought and waiting.

Lance smiled. "I’ll have a Dr. Pepper and the ‘ _Combination Plate_ ’ with fried shrimp and scallops." He offered Charlie his menu and then took a drink of his water, looking at the others and waiting for one of them to order.

"You may as well just bring a pitcher of Dr. Pepper when you come," Joey said with a grin as he handed over his menu, "and I’d like the steak and fried shrimp, please."

Both boys nodded as Charlie quickly wrote that down, then looked up expectantly at Chris.

"Crab legs for me please, with rice," Chris said, "and a Mountain Dew."

Charlie jotted that down and then took Chris’ menu before turning to JC and Justin.

JC spoke first, smiling. "The ‘ _Chicken Crustacean_ ’ please, with rice and tea."

Charlie started writing, asking, "Do you want plain tea or sweet tea?"

"Plain, please," JC answered with a grin.

Charlie looked up then at Justin, who quickly swallowed the bite of mozzarella stick he’d just taken and said, "I’d like the ‘ _Seafood Treasure_ ’ thing with cole slaw and a potato, please."

Charlie started writing that down, then glanced up. "And your drink?"

"Mountain Dew."

Charlie nodded, then grinned at them all. "Okay, it’ll be just a few minutes, the seafood cooks pretty quickly. If there’s anything else you’d like, be sure to say something to Mike when he brings your drinks, okay?"

The guys nodded and then watched the two teens go before everyone but Lance started on the cheese sticks.

JC turned sideways in his chair to look out over the water as he nibbled at his second cheese stick, eating the breading first and smiling as he watched the waves and listened to the surf. Justin was staring at JC with a little grin while the other three just smiled and watched them, wondering how long it would take JC to realize he had Justin’s undivided attention even when he was just doing something so simple as eating.

 


	22. Chapter 22

  
~~~~ 22 ~~~~

 

JC finished his third mozzarella stick and began absently playing with his necklace as he watched the tide come in. It had been much too long since they spent time at the ocean, and JC had missed the smell of salt water and the feel of the breezes that never seemed to stop along the shore. He was completely ignoring the others until Justin finally spoke up and distracted him.

"Josh, are you ever going to tell me where you got that? I know it was right before we went to Europe, but you’ve never said anything more."

JC looked over at Justin and then at the others in surprise, then turned the rest of the way back to the table. "You probably don’t want to know, baby, but I’ll tell you if you want."

The other three just watched and listened, munching on cheese sticks and waiting for an answer. They’d asked JC a hundred times each if they’d asked him once, and the answer was always just a smile or a grin as JC changed the subject. They’d all heard Justin ask him before and JC had never even offered to tell, so they were all hoping he would finally end the mystery.

Justin looked confused, even though he was still smiling. "Why wouldn’t I want to know? I asked, didn’t I?"

JC was thoughtful a moment, then sighed and nodded. "Yeah, you did.” JC paused slightly, seeming to gather himself, and then went on. “Tony gave it to me just before we left the states the first time. He and I had spent a weekend together not long before that while you were in Missouri visiting family, and we... Well, Tony is bi and I was having all sorts of feelings for you, and I wanted to know what it was like." JC looked down at the table, unconsciously moving his right hand up to play with the necklace again as he went on, "Tony was really sweet about it even though I told him before hand that I didn’t feel for him like he did for me..."

JC trailed off then, frowning slightly, but after only a moment he spoke again. "Anyway, a couple of days before we left for Europe – the day we were all supposed to be at that barbeque and I was late, remember? – he called and asked me to meet him for lunch one last time before we left. He’d been my friend for years and I said yes because I was sure he knew we were just friends and it would be like it always had been. We had a long talk about the group, and how long I thought we’d be gone, and remembering things we’d done together over the years. I had a really good time until he asked me to go back to his apartment with him."

JC paused again, still not looking at anyone, then continued, "I told him no and I got up to leave because I didn’t want to give him a chance to persuade me, but he begged me not to go angry. There was no telling how long it would be until we saw each other again, and he said he didn’t want to have to remember a fight as how I said goodbye. He gave me the necklace then, just sort of out of left field, and I sat back down as I asked him why. He told me he hoped you and I were happy together, but that he wanted me to remember he was my first in a lot of ways and that he always would be no matter what happened with you."

JC looked up at Justin then, expecting Justin to be upset, but Justin just smiled at him. "You told him you loved me?"

Lance and Chris were watching Justin closely, wondering at how well he was taking the news and watching for some sign that he was hiding how he really felt. Lance was especially surprised by Justin’s calm; he knew Justin and Tony didn’t get along very well and thought Justin would be much more possessive of JC than he seemed to be.

JC smiled at Justin a little hesitantly. "Well, not exactly... I didn’t even know he knew until then, but when I asked him he told me that I’d made it pretty obvious. That’s when I asked how and he told me I had... " JC blushed very red suddenly. "...said your name during an … interesting dream while I was sleeping with him. Then he asked me why I had sex with him if I loved you, and I told him that he knew before we did anything that I didn’t love him. He said that wasn’t what he’d asked me and just sat there waiting for an answer, and I finally told him that I had been curious and I didn’t think you felt the same way about me as I did about you. He laughed at me and said you worshiped the ground I walked on, so of course you’d do anything I wanted you to, especially since I’d gotten him to teach me how to make you enjoy it." JC made a face. "He didn’t understand when I tried to explain to him I didn’t want it to be like that between us, that I wanted it to be because you loved me instead of because I asked you to be with me. He told me I was an idiot and to look him up if I ever wanted to see him again, and he left."

Justin smiled a bit wider. "He was partially right; I would have done anything you wanted. I’d been in love with you for a long time by then, I was just afraid to say anything, especially after we joined the group and you started hanging out with Joey and Chris all the time, clubbing and going to bars. I was sure they were both straight," he grinned across the table at Joey and Chris, who looked amused, "and I figured you must be too."

Chris was about to say something when the door to the restaurant opened and Mike walked out with a tray, carrying five glasses and two pitchers. "Sorry it took so long," the tall blond said as he walked quickly over to them, "but someone had already turned off the drink machine and I had to let it warm up." He gave them a wry grin and set the tray on the table before he handed JC his tea, then gave Joey, Lance, Chris and Justin their drinks and put the pitchers of Dr. Pepper and Mountain Dew on the table. "Anything else?" he asked when he was done, holding the tray he’d brought and looking expectantly at them.

Lance shook his head. "No thank you, Mike, we’re fine."

Mike nodded quickly and gave them another grin, then left.

After the door closed behind the lanky blonde, Chris, looking a little confused, asked JC, "So you’ve worn that all these years to remember Tony by?"

"Oh no," JC answered quickly with a soft laugh. "That’s why he wanted me to wear it, yeah, but it’s not why I did. I got this," JC reached his right hand up to hold the pendant he’d worn non-stop for over six years, "the first time I actually admitted to anyone that I was in love with Justin. You’ll probably think it’s completely sappy of me, but that’s what I remember when I think about my necklace, not Tony. It’s a constant reminder that I love him and I can get through anything as long as I have him near me."

JC looked at Justin then, smiling, and let his hand fall from the necklace to take Justin’s hand under the edge of the table as the younger man smiled back at him. Justin thought of all the times over the years JC had zoned out on them all while he played with that necklace and suddenly wondered if Tony knew why JC wore it. Tony had never liked Justin, but he’d tolerated him until the last year or so, when he’d suddenly gone to an active dislike that had puzzled Justin but now made more sense.

Lance spoke up then, interrupting Justin’s train of thought as he smiled and said, "I think it’s sweet."

Joey chuckled as Chris snorted and teased, "You would, you’re almost as sappy as they are!"

Lance grinned at Chris. "Uh-huh. And who was it who was curled up in my lap for two hours this evening because he wanted to cuddle?"

"I don’t know," Chris replied quickly, "but if you find out, tell me so I can kick his ass. That’s my lap."

JC and Justin both laughed, and Joey grinned at Chris as he said, "Just don’t forget you have to share it, Critter."

Chris grinned at Joey. "I’d never forget that, Joe-bear."

JC spoke then, looking at Justin as his curiosity finally got the best of him. "Justin, are you sure you aren’t upset about me and Tony? It wasn’t just the one weekend, I’ve let him talk me into his bed quite a few times over the years. You two hate each other, I was sure you’d be upset." JC didn’t want to hurt Justin but he also didn’t want to hide anything from him. Telling him about Tony was something he had expected to be hard on them both, so he wanted to get it all over with at once.

Justin smiled at JC and squeezed his hand. "Tony has always been the one who doesn’t like me, not the other way around. You said yourself it was just sex, so what you did or how often doesn’t matter. I’m glad you went to him instead of a stranger, I know he cares about you." Justin paused, looking into JC’s eyes with obvious love as he went on softly, "I knew years ago that I wouldn’t be your first, Josh. I just want to be your last."

JC smiled back at him. "You’re the first and the last in my heart baby, you always have been." JC leaned towards Justin and kissed him as Joey jumped up, leaning to get the nearly empty pitcher of Dr Pepper in such a way that nobody at the glass doors could see them kiss.

"Guys," Chris said quickly, "public!"

JC pulled away quickly and Joey sat down as JC said, "Sorry, my fault."

"I’m not," Justin said, squeezing JC’s hand again under the table before he let go of it. "Nobody’s over there looking anyway, see?" He looked over at the glass doors, drawing the eyes of the others over there, and had to make a real effort not to look shocked when he saw Mike standing there with Charlie, both looking a bit wide-eyed.

"Shit," Chris said softly, looking back at the table. "If those two saw that, you are in _so_ much trouble."

"What are you going to do?" Joey asked as he looked at Chris with a tolerant smile, "Take away their toys?"

Lance gave him a dirty look. "It’s not funny, Joe. Mike and Charlie are old enough somebody might believe them. We all have to be ca—" he broke off suddenly, looking up as the door opened and Mike came out carrying another pitcher of Dr. Pepper.

They all watched Mike walk over in complete silence, giving him polite smiles, and watched him switch pitchers and then fidget slightly in place a moment before he said suddenly, "I’m sorry, we shouldn’t have been watching you. Don’t worry about us, please. Saying anything I mean."

Chris raised an eyebrow at Mike and smiled at him, long practice with hostile interviews helping him to keep his cool. "Say anything about what?"

Mike looked at JC and Justin and bit his lip, then looked over at where Charlie was watching from the door and jerked his head in a ‘come here’ gesture. The redhead looked around and then slipped out the door as Mike looked back at the guys and said, "About anything."

Lance smiled. "Mike, just what do you think you saw?"

Charlie joined Mike then, standing at his side so that the difference in height between the two was more obvious as Charlie answered softly, "That we were right all along."

JC smiled at them, his head cocked to one side. "Right about what? Just say it, guys. Whatever it is we won’t get mad."

Mike and Charlie exchanged a look, and then Charlie looked straight at JC and said quietly, "You and Justin are together, and you have to hide it because your families would hate you, you’d lose your jobs, and most of your friends would turn on you. Am I close?"

Chris and Lance were completely surprised by that and more than a little worried, but JC just smiled at the boys. "Yeah, pretty much. What gave us away? From the way you’re talking you were pretty sure before tonight."

Charlie shrugged. "Mike and I have always been best friends, but we’ve been together since junior high. We’re in the same situation pretty much, only it won’t get put in the papers if people find out about us, we’ll just get beat up and run out of town."

Mike snorted. "If we got lucky. Most people around here think being gay is just a short step above being a child molester. My dad would kill me himself to keep people from finding out he had a faggot for a son, and my mother and brother would help him hide the body. The day I come out is the day I become an orphan."

JC said quietly, "It sucks, doesn’t it? My parents are from Maryland and they’re the same –" JC broke off as the door opened again and Kelsey stuck her head out.

"Charlie, Mike, come on," she called softly. "Dad’s gonna be through in the kitchen any minute and he’ll kill you two for bugging them. Let them eat in peace!"

Charlie looked quickly at Kelsey and nodded. "We’re coming, right now."

“Hurry up.” Kelsey looked at them for a moment longer and then ducked back into the restaurant.

Charlie looked back at JC and Justin, smiling. "Good luck."

Mike nodded and said, "Yeah. We’ll be back soon with your food."

Both young men quickly left then, and Chris looked at Lance, wondering if he was thinking what Chris was thinking. The whole thing with the boys could have gone much worse than it had, and they couldn’t always be that lucky.

Lance gazed at Chris for a long moment and then made a decision, looking at JC and Justin. "You two know I love you, and I definitely want you to be together, but we can’t be lucky every time. I think when we’re in public you should keep one of us between you for a while, just to be safe."

Justin looked upset but he didn’t protest. JC frowned and shook his head though, looking at Lance and Chris as he said firmly, "No. The kiss was a bad idea, yeah, and so is the holding hands, but I won’t be separated from Justin. Most of our lives are spent in public and I will _not_ give up being with my best friend in the world just to keep people from realizing he’s also the man I love."

Justin nodded quickly, his expression clearing. "Yeah, what he said. You said it yourself, Lance, most people will just assume we’re acting like we always have as long at we keep it toned down."

Chris was rarely ever truly serious, but he looked very serious at the moment. "Then guys, you’ve got to use your heads. You sing to each other every time we perform—" He held up a hand when they started to interrupt. "Let me finish! You sing to each other when we perform and that’s okay, you always have so the fans are used to it, but you’ve got to remember not to go too far. Tonight you did. If Johnny had been here to see you sing ‘ _Something Like You_ ’ for these kids, he would have had you both drawn and quartered right after he went screaming to Jive that it wasn’t his fault. Sing for each other, _live_ for each other, but look at the fans when you do it and remember those twelve year old girls understand a lot more than most people think they do, okay?"

Joey spoke up just as Lance opened his mouth to speak again, looking at Chris and Lance as he said, "Guys, lay off."

Chris’ eyebrows went up as Lance looked shocked and said, "Joe, you know we’re right!"

Joey nodded. "Yeah, but I’ve had the unique experience of loving you both and I know neither of you did any better. Chris and I fucked like rabbits for months after we got together, in public or not, and were seen by half the bouncers in Orlando in positions that are illegal in most states. Hell, Lance, you and I almost got caught having sex more than once -- much  less just kissing – and we evidently _did_ get caught by Lonnie. The MTV thing we did for ‘ _On The Line_ ’ even has quite a bit of video of us playing a little too fast and loose, and that was _months_ later."

Joey paused then to see if either of the other two would say anything, then he continued, "We’ve stomped on rumors we didn’t like before, even ones that were true, and we can do it again. JC and Justin love each other -- need each other -- more than any two people I’ve ever known, and I don’t want us to push them apart even a little bit. I know how much it hurts to see the person you love all the time and not be able to show how you feel, and I won’t stand by and watch either of them go through that now that they’re together."

JC smiled gratefully at Joey. "Thanks, Joe." Justin nodded and smiled at Joey too while JC looked at Lance and Chris as he went on softly, "I don’t want to cause trouble for the group any more than you do, you both know that. Justin and I just have to get used to this, that’s all. Keep telling me when we cross the line -- that’s something I need you to do, it’s so easy to forget myself with him -- but please don’t ask us to stay apart. ‘ _Selfish_ ’ wasn’t just a song to me guys, I meant every single word." He paused a second and then looked at Justin as he sang softly, " _If love is a crime, then punish me, I would die for you,_ _‘_ _cause I don_ _’_ _t wanna live without you_."

Justin put his hand on JC’s leg under the table and smiled softly at him. "You won’t have to try, Josh. I feel the same way." He looked at Chris and Lance then and added, "Just help us out a while guys, we’ll get it together, I promise."

Lance and Chris were both quiet as Joey gave JC and Justin a smile and nodded.

Chris spoke finally after a minute, looking seriously at JC and Justin. "Joe’s right guys, I told you myself not to let anyone try to push you apart and here I am doing just that. We’ve got a whole week before we’re back on tour. You two have memorized the steps for whole concerts in less time, we should be able to help you figure out where the line between ‘best buddies who share everything’ and ‘take me now’ is by then." He grinned at them then and went on, "A little hint, Juppy? It’s above the belt."

Justin grinned sheepishly and took his hand off JC’s thigh, moving it up onto the table instead.

"I’m sorry too, guys," Lance said, sighing softly. "I was expecting more from you than I was able to do myself and that’s not fair. We’ll all help you remember, okay?" He smiled at them and was about to say something else when the doors to the restaurant opened and Charlie, Mike, and Kelsey walked out carrying trays of food, followed by Warren.

"Dinner is served," Mike said with a bright grin as he reached the table. He sat Joey’s plate on the table in front of him with a flourish. "Your steak and shrimp, sir." He moved around to stand next to Lance as he took a plate piled with variously shaped fried things on it off the tray he carried. "And your combination plate, sir."

Mike sat the plate down just as Charlie moved up next to Justin on the other side and grinned at him as he sat down his plate in front of him. "Your seafood treasures," and he moved over next to JC and sat down his plate, "And your chicken crustacean."

Kelsey had already put Chris’ plate of crablegs down with a quick grin for him, then looked at the other two teenagers and pointed wordlessly to the door. Mike and Charlie grinned at the guys and then let her herd them out as Warren spoke. "I hope you’re enjoying your evening and that the boys haven’t been bothering you too much. They mean well, really they do, they’re just a bit—" He broke off and shrugged, then went on with a wry grin, "Well, anyway, is there anything I can do for you?"

Chris grinned. "They haven’t been bothering us at all, right guys?" He looked at the others and everyone nodded, then Chris looked back up at Warren. "It’s been really nice to just sit out here and enjoy the ocean without having to worry about reporters or a hundred screaming teenyboppers. If the food is half as good as the service, we’re going to bug you for a table every time we have a chance."

Warren grinned widely, pleased. "I’m glad you boys feel that way. I’ve always liked to sit out here on the deck of an evening myself. If there’s nothing else you need, I’ll go let you enjoy your meal." He turned to go and saw Charlie and Mike at the door, and then looked back at their table and said dryly, "And I’ll keep those two out of your hair, too." He left then, pulling the shades on the outside of the glass doors shut before he closed them so that very little of the light inside escaped, and anyone wanting to watch them would have to open a door.

The guys started eating then, commenting on the food and keeping conversation light even though they were all thinking about what had been said before the food was brought out. While the others talked, JC dug into his chicken smothered in crabmeat, scallops and shrimp in a cream sauce over rice, eating with more obvious enjoyment than any of them had seen from him in quite some time, and Justin finally had to say something.

"Josh, babe, is it that good?"             

JC finished chewing and then swallowed, nodding happily. "Oh yeah, I love it! There’s nothing like fresh seafood with chicken and rice. I can only think of one thing I’d rather eat, but it’s not on the menu." JC grinned at Justin, ignoring his own half-full glass of tea to pick up Justin’s glass and drink some of his Mountain Dew, which prompted Lance to speak up.

"C, if you’d rather have Mountain Dew there’s a pitcher of it right here. I can pour you a glass."

JC set Justin’s glass back down where it had been between them and grinned at Lance. "No thanks, this way the ice doesn’t have time to melt."

Lance looked surprised, but Justin just popped another of his fried scallops into his mouth. He’d known for years that JC liked sharing with him because he always finished a drink long before the ice melted and watered it down.

Chris laughed. "Is that why you always share with the Infant if you get half a chance?"

JC nodded, bemused. "Yeah... Why did you think I do it?"

Chris shrugged and grinned. "I dunno, something to do with the fact you wanted to kiss him and couldn’t I guess, like sharing his toothbrush half the time. Swapping spit by proxy."

Lance chuckled, shaking his head. "Chris, sweetheart, you’re just a little weird. You know that, right?"

Joey and Justin both laughed while JC grinned and took another bite of his seafood and rice.

Chris grinned at Lance. "Of course! Weird people have more fun." He twisted one of his crab legs with practiced ease and split it, then began to eat again.

Something dawned on JC as he swallowed a moment later and he looked across the table at Chris. "You knew I wanted to kiss him?"

Justin looked up from his plate, popping a shrimp in his mouth and waiting interestedly for an answer.

Chris looked at JC for a minute, thinking while he chewed, then swallowed and nodded. "I’d gotten that feeling, yeah. Not enough to say anything, but I’d noticed a lot of little things. I’ve always known you love the kid, Jayce. Joe told me you two were closer than anyone I’d ever meet before he even introduced us, and you’ve only gotten closer since. I just figured you’d finally realized you were in love, too. I mean, have you ever noticed the music you listen to?"

JC blinked, surprised. "What about it?"

Chris chuckled. "Just that every other song is about being in love with an androgynous ‘baby’ and most of the ones you write are the same way, or even more obvious like that song you did for the Popstars group. When I heard it I was sure you wrote it about Justin."

Justin looked surprised. "What song?"

Lance’s eyebrows went up, looking at JC and then Chris expectantly and wondering the same thing.

"’ _What She Got_ ’,” Chris said, a little surprised they didn’t know what he was talking about. “Scene 23 put it on their debut. You guys have never heard it?"

Justin shook his head and looked at JC, who flushed and said quietly, "I didn’t tell anyone about it but you, Chris. I realized how obvious it was after you convinced me to help them record it, but it was already on the album."

"Why did you even let me see it?" Chris asked. "I thought then that it was because you knew you’d written it about Justin."

JC shrugged and looked at his plate to play with his rice. "He was busy with Brit’s new album and I didn’t want to bug him with something that I just planned to give away."

Justin spoke up quickly, upset. "Josh, you never bug me."

JC looked up and gave Justin a quick smile. "Oh I know that now, baby. That was right after I came back from California that last time. Bobbee had messed with my head, and then Tony made it worse, and when I finally got back home you were off with Brit all the time and..." He trailed off, then shrugged and gave Justin a wry little smile. "Well, I was just a little nuts for a while, that’s all."

Chris frowned, remembering that JC had come home with bruises the last time he went to California. "Is Tony the one who slapped you around while you were in California that last time? I’d always thought Bobbee did it."

JC shrugged. "Well, kind of. Bobbee is the one who slapped me. I finally got mad and called her a starfucker and she didn’t appreciate it even a little bit. Tony was the one who punched me. I’d been staying with him almost a week and he was trying his best to convince me that he and I could be happy together. He got pretty pissed when I told him I was leaving, and we fought, and yeah." JC shrugged slightly. “He hit me, but I kind of brought it on myself. I knew how he is when he’s pissed.”

The other four frowned and Justin asked, "Josh, did he hurt you?"

Joey immediately followed with, "Do I need to send Steve to kick his ass?"

JC shook his head quickly, reaching for Justin’s glass. "Oh no, guys, it wasn’t anything like that, Tony really does care about me. We were arguing and I got pissed and punched him, so he punched me back. He was upset about it when he realized he’d hit me and wanted to make it up to me, but by then I just wanted out of there so I didn’t stick around to let him." JC paused to take a sip of Justin’s drink before he went on. "I shouldn’t have been there at all, really, but I needed to forget my life for a while and I went to Tony. I deserved a lot of the things he said about me when I left. I screwed around with his feelings for years without ever even noticing I was doing it, and when I finally did notice I hurt him even worse." JC shrugged and then took another bite of his meal, looking down at his plate because he was still more than a little ashamed of how he’d treated Tony.

After a few minutes Lance spoke, breaking the silence. "Josh, you hate fighting. What did he say that made you mad enough to hit him?"

JC looked up, swallowing before he spoke. "Well, when I told him I was leaving, I also said that I couldn’t keep screwing around with him, and I wouldn’t be back because of some things that had happened. He got really upset and mentioned the Diary thing Brit did for MTV where she said she and Justin were getting married, and told me to stop waiting for someone I could never have. He wanted me to make a life for myself with him, and said if I gave him a chance I’d have someone who would be there for me all the time instead of just when his girlfriend wasn’t around. I told him then that there had never been more than friendship between us and there would never be more even if Justin did marry Brit because I just don’t feel that way about him."

JC looked a little sad as he took a deep breath and then continued on. "He said I was a fool, and that the fact Justin could share my bed without touching me proved he was straight as they come. He said he hoped Justin really was in love with Brit so I’d have to watch them together all the time and know how he had felt for the last ten years. That hit really close to home, and I didn’t even think about it before I punched him in the jaw. He hit me back, and then I left."

Justin gazed worriedly at JC, still frowning. "And then when you got home I was doing just like he’d said I would be, hanging out with Brit all the time and saying we would be together forever to whatever reporter stuck a mike in my face. You stopped talking to me at all, and I was so busy I didn’t even notice until it was too late."

JC laid his hand on Justin’s arm and smiled at him. "Baby, you didn’t know, and it’s over and done with anyway. We’re together now and we’re staying together forever, that’s what matters."

"You’re right," Justin said after a minute, smiling back, then looked at JC’s plate and raised his eyebrows as he changed the subject. "And it looks like I’m going to lose our bet. What are you going to make me do?"

JC looked at his mostly empty plate, then up at Justin and gave him a wicked little grin. "I’m not telling." He took another bite of his rice and then smirked at Justin as he chewed.

Chris chuckled and teased, "Aw, come on, Josh. Enquiring minds want to know. What do you have planned for the Infant?"

JC grinned across the table at Chris, chewing for a few more moments before he swallowed and said, "I’m not saying, but I promise you’ll enjoy it too."

Justin was obviously shocked by that, and Lance laughed and said, "C’mon Josh, tell. Will we all get to play, or just you and Chris?"

JC just gave Lance a wicked little grin and took another mouthful of his rice, refusing to speak.

Justin stared at JC for a minute and then suddenly said, "I think I’ve created a monster."

JC looked at Justin then, still grinning and not even trying to deny it. He started rather exaggeratedly scraping the last of his seafood and rice together so he could get it on his fork a moment later, and the other three laughed at the expression on Justin’s face.

 


	23. Chapter 23

  
~~~~ 23 ~~~~

 

They laughed and joked about what JC might make Justin do for a little while, making JC and then Justin blush as Chris and Joey and finally even Lance got into it, but they stopped abruptly when Kelsey opened the door.

JC, Joey, and Justin were all through eating and just enjoying the chance to relax and talk with their friends. Chris was talking and toying with the shells of his crab legs while Lance picked at what was left of his rice, neither really hungry anymore, so they all gave Kelsey big grins when she walked out.

"Hi," Kelsey said, smiling at them. She watched JC take a drink of Justin’s Mountain Dew, and then noticed the pitchers were both empty. "Do you need anything, drinks or maybe dessert or something?"

Lance smiled and shook his head, but didn’t speak up because his mouth was full.

JC put Justin’s glass down and said, "No, we’re fine Kelsey. We’re just about ready to go, actually. Are Lonnie and the boys through eating?"

Kelsey nodded quickly. "Yes sir, they are. Three of them were picked up by your bus just a bit ago, and Lonnie and Dre are just sitting around watching us shag."

JC’s face lit up with enthusiasm. "You know how to shag?!"

Kelsey laughed. "Everyone here on the beach does, I think. There’s a shag contest on Friday night at Celebrations that Mike and I are entering, and we decided to practice a bit tonight since we’re here anyway. Mike and Charlie are both much better at shagging than I am, so I can use the extra help."

Lance smiled. "Would you mind if we watch a bit? I’ve never gotten to watch anyone shag unless you count that movie. If the bus just picked up Scott, Mark, and James it’ll be a while until they’re really ready for us at the hotel."

Kelsey’s eyes widened a bit. "You’re welcome to, sure, but I’m not very good. You could go down the road to Celebrations and watch people who are really good, they don’t close until two a.m."

Joey smiled. "We’d much rather watch you three, if your dad doesn’t mind. If we go to a club there will be a major hassle and we wouldn’t get to see anything for dodging people."

“Oh!” Kelsey giggled. "That would be a problem, and I’m sure dad won’t mind. Come on inside whenever you’re ready."

The guys looked across the table at each other and then Chris grinned. "We’re ready now. Maybe you three can even teach an old man like me a thing or two. Shagging is something I’ve never done."

They stood and Kelsey led the way back inside, smiling over her shoulder at them. "We will if you’d like, Mr. Kirkpatrick. I’m good enough to show you the basics, and Mike and Charlie could teach anyone."

She went inside then, followed by the guys, and they all made their way through the room full of tables towards the dance floor. Mike and Charlie were already dancing with Kelsey’s two younger sisters, Michelle and Shan, patiently showing them the steps while the sound system played surfing music. Warren was nowhere to be seen, but Lonnie and Dre were sitting at a table near the edge of the dance floor watching the kids and talking quietly.

"I love ‘ _Goofy Foot_ ’!" JC said with a huge grin after listening to the music and watching the kids dance for only a moment. "You guys have great taste. The Lively Ones are cool."

The four dancing stopped as the song ended and looked up, the younger girl’s eyes going huge as she blushed bright red. "Umm... I have to go help dad," Shan said quickly and hurried into the kitchen.

Kelsey looked at the guys. "Sorry about that, she’s a little shy."

"It’s okay, really, we’re used to it. She didn’t scream, which is a nice change," Lance said with a wry grin.

"I bet!" Kelsey replied with a giggle, then looked at the three still on the dance floor. "They wanted to watch, and I told them that’d be okay."

Michelle turned red. "Oh. Uhm, I’m not gonna run out of the room, but like, I’ll fall flat on my face if I try to shag in front of you."

Justin smiled at Michelle. "We’re just regular guys like Mike and Charlie here, but if you don’t feel comfortable, don’t worry about it."

Mike and Charlie exchanged a look and then both grinned as Mike said, "Well, _we_ don’t mind you watching us and Kelsey needs the practice dancing in front of people, don’t you Kelce?"

Kelsey made a face. "Which is why I already told them yes."

Michelle grinned. "I’ll go start the music again."

JC grinned happily and walked to the stage, turning to hop up and sit on the edge with Justin and Joey both following him to do the same while Chris and Lance went to go sit with Lonnie and Dre.

Kelsey walked out onto the dance floor and looked at Charlie with one eyebrow raised. "I can only dance with one of you at a time, y’know."

Charlie stuck his tongue out at her and went to go sit on the stage next to JC, grinning at JC, Justin, and Joey. "She probably told you she’s not very good. She lied, they’ve got a good chance of winning our age group."

Kelsey rolled her eyes. "Gee thanks, Char, get their expectations up so I look like a fool!"

The next song, ‘ _Little GTO_ ’ by Jan & Dean, started then and Mike grinned, taking Kelsey’s hand and making her turn towards him as he said, "C’mon, don’t worry about them, Kelce. Watch me." She took his other hand and followed as he began to dance, and soon both of them were grinning as they got into it.

JC was moving his shoulders to the beat and using his hands to tap the steps out on his thighs as he watched them dance, and when he realized Charlie was watching him he gave him a bright grin and then looked back out at the dancing pair while Charlie just kept watching him with a little awe. Justin noticed JC after a minute and chuckled, then looked past him at Charlie and winked at the younger man before he looked back out at the dancers. Justin figured JC might stay on the stage through two songs, if that, and then he’d be dancing too.

When the song ended, Kelsey and Mike paused as the guys all clapped. "You two are great!" Chris said, grinning. "I couldn’t do that to save my life!"

Kelsey blushed as Mike grinned and took a bow. "Thank you! We keep telling her she’s good, but Kelsey won’t listen to us."

Chris looked pointedly at Lance. "That sounds like somebody I know; he doesn’t think he can dance either." The three on the stage chuckled and Lance made a face at Chris.

Michelle called out, "Sis, you ready for the next song?"

Kelsey called back, "Yeah."

The next song started a moment later, ‘ _Under the Boardwalk_ ’ by the Drifters, and the two on the dance floor started again. JC watched them a few seconds, then hopped off the stage and looked at Justin. "Dance with me!" he said to him, grinning and holding out a hand.

Justin shook his head and laughed. "Oh hell no Josh, not me! I can’t do that and I’m not gonna make a fool of myself trying! Give me nice simple choreography any day."

JC looked at Joey, who grinned and shook his head, then looked at Charlie. "Would you? If I beg a bit and promise not to step on your feet?" JC asked the shorter redhead with a grin, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

Charlie looked shocked for just a second and then slid off the stage, blushing. "Sure, if you want. Do you know how?"

JC just grinned and grabbed Charlie’s hand, dragging him without a word towards where Kelsey and Mike had stopped to stare, then turned towards Charlie to take his other hand and start dancing. Charlie missed a step or three when they started, but after a verse of the song he and JC were grinning like fools and dancing like they’d practiced together for weeks while Kelsey, Mike, and Michelle all watched with delighted grins. Justin was on the edge of the stage grinning too, watching the way JC moved and wishing he knew the dance so he would have the excuse to dance with him more while they were in Myrtle Beach.

Chris looked at Lance after a minute, surprised. "Did you know JC could do that?!"

Lance shook his head and grinned at Chris. "No, but I can’t say I’m really surprised. He seems to know just about every dance ever invented. Those mice-trainers were really thorough with him."

Chris laughed. “Yeah, I guess so!”

The music stopped after another minute and then the next song started. JC immediately started dancing with Charlie again, their feet moving quickly through the steps as ‘ _Alley Oop_ ’ played, both of them beginning to improvise a bit as they got more used to dancing together. JC hadn’t shagged in years and was loving every minute of it, not a little bit because of how talented his partner was. Charlie was quick to follow JC’s lead and was easily keeping up with the energetic brunette, something only Justin and Wade did with any regularity when JC wasn’t sticking to choreography.

After watching JC and Charlie dance a bit longer Mike and Kelsey started dancing again. It was quickly obvious to those watching that Mike was almost as good as Charlie or JC, but the three men were in a whole different league from Kelsey, even though the girl was good.

"We oughta hire these two," Chris said suddenly, grinning at Lance. "They’re damn good, and would be great as personal assistants, considering."

Lance looked at Chris, surprised, but after only a moment’s thought he grinned at him, sure he knew at least part of the reason Chris wanted to hire the boys. "Lemme think about it, okay?"

Chris grinned and nodded, sure that was almost as good as a yes, then went back to watching the four dancing. If Lance was taking it seriously, Chris was confident he didn’t need to worry about it anymore.

Mike was dancing with Charlie while JC danced with Kelsey to the song ‘ _Stagger Lee_ ’ by Lloyd Price when Warren and Shan came out of the kitchen about thirty minutes later, stopping in surprise to watch.

Justin nudged Joey with his elbow after only a minute, then they both watched the way Warren grinned as he watched his daughter dance with JC until the song ended and Michelle turned off the stereo. Justin and Joey hopped off the stage to go join Chris and Lance, figuring they should go soon since it was getting pretty late.

Warren clapped and started walking towards where Chris and Lance were sitting, calling, "That was terrific! Kelsey sweetheart, you were great!"

JC nodded enthusiastically, grinning at Kelsey. "Yeah girl, you’re good! You’ll kick butt in that contest. I worked at Disney with girls who couldn’t dance half so well."

Kelsey turned beet red, unable to think of anything to say other than a soft, "Thank you."

Mike and Charlie grinned at each other as Mike said, "We must be pretty good too, since she learned from us."

Charlie nodded at Mike, grinning.

"Oh yeah, you two are great,” JC enthused. “If you’re not careful I’ll snatch you two up to go on tour with us." He grinned at the wide-eyed looks they gave him before they looked at each other as Kelsey, Michelle, and Shan stared.

Lance and Chris exchanged wry grins and stood to meet Warren as he reached the table. JC had picked up a hundred strays with a lot less talent over the years for worse reasons.

"I hope we haven’t kept you too late," Lance said to Warren with a smile as he slung his backpack over his shoulder. "JC loves to dance, so when he heard that your daughter was practicing we had to watch. Just watching didn’t last long though." He gave JC a tolerant grin and JC just beamed, still happy as could be because he’d gotten to play.

Warren chuckled. "No problem at all, Lance. We just barely finished in the kitchen." He looked over at Charlie and Mike as he added, "You two need to go clear their table, though. It’s almost midnight and you’ve got school tomorrow."

Charlie and Mike exchanged a look and then Mike headed to get the trays to bus the tables into while Charlie started for the door to the deck.

Lance made a decision then and called, "Wait a minute, Charlie.”

Warren looked at Lance in surprise as Charlie stopped and looked back. “Yes sir?”

"Chris and I were thinking the same thing JC was, about offering you two a job." Lance took off his bag to open it and take out a notepad and pen, and then quickly jotted down a number and handed it to Charlie, who was staring at him in shock. "Think about it, and if you’re interested call my assistant, Joanne. We could really use you two. JC and Justin’s assistant left us a while back to have a baby, and we always keep our eyes open for dancers. You two could do either or even both if you wanted, and you wouldn’t necessarily have to finish school first. I did my junior and senior year of high school and then got a business degree riding a bus all over Europe."

Warren stared at Lance. "You’re kidding, right?"

Mike came back out of the kitchen and saw Charlie was just staring at a piece of paper, but he headed quickly out the door to the deck anyway to get started. He knew Charlie would tell him what was going on when he came outside.

Charlie looked up as Lance said firmly, "No sir, I’m not kidding. These two have a lot more talent for dancing than I did at their age, and very likely more than I have _now_ after years of doing it under professional supervision. If they were to try out at an open call for dancers and show them what we just saw, they could have a job with just about anyone and be making excellent money at it."

Justin nodded, grinning. "Yeah, if Lance hadn’t said anything I was going to have Brit call them. She would jump at the chance to hire them for her stage show, she’s always needing more guys. There aren’t very many that are seriously good at dancing, a lot of guys think it’s stupid."

What they were saying was finally sinking in, and a grin bloomed on Charlie’s face as he realized what it would mean for he and Mike if they took the jobs. Charlie loved to dance and the guys already knew they were together so that wouldn’t be a problem, plus they wouldn’t even have to hide they were together anymore. It was common knowledge that Brit used gay dancers in her show, as did quite a few other artists. It was almost expected, really.

Warren stared at Charlie in surprise for a moment and then said, "Wow. One of the biggest music groups in the world wants to hire my two youngest waiters. I’m speechless."

Charlie grinned at the group. "I’ll talk to Mike and we’ll let you know really soon, okay?"

Chris grinned. "No rush, kid. Talk it over and make sure this is something you want to do, and then let us know. If you or your parents have any questions for us, be sure to call."

JC nodded and smiled at Charlie as he said, "Yeah, and really think about starting out as our assistants. Besides the fact we need you, if you work with us for a while you could learn what the music business is like before you commit to a contract as anything else."

Lonnie’s phone rang then and everyone quieted and turned to look at him as he pulled it out and spoke quietly into a moment before he hung up. "That was Scotty. You’re all checked in at the hotel and your bags are in your suite."

Lance smiled. "Thanks, Lonnie."

"No problem, boss," Lonnie replied, grinning.

Lance looked back at Charlie. "We’ll be in the area a day or two, then we’re heading south and then west to Texas and California, but if you and Mike – or either of you – decide you’d like to join us even after that, give us a call and I’ll have you flown to wherever we are. We’d like to have you as part of our team, and I think you’ll both fit in well and that you’d enjoy it."

The other guys all nodded, smiling as Charlie said sincerely, "Thank you. We’ll let you know soon, I promise. I’ve got to go help Mike, y’all have a good night." He gave them all a big smile and then headed outside, pulling a wallet from his back pocket and putting the phone number Lance had given him in it as he went.

Lance turned back to Warren, who was watching Charlie walk out like he’d never seen him before. "If you’ll just ring up our bill we’ll pay out and get out of your way, sir. We’ve kept you later than we should have already."

Warren looked at Lance quickly. "Oh, no, it was on the house. You went out of your way to make this a special evening for my girls, that’s worth a meal any day."

They all heard a loud whoop from outside then, and Kelsey giggled. “Mike’s happy.” She grinned at everyone and went quickly to the door to the deck to go outside and join her friends.

Lance smiled at Warren. "We can’t let you do that, sir. We’d have had to pay anywhere else we could have gone tonight, and wouldn’t have had nearly as nice a meal or company as good as we did here."

Warren looked undecided and Chris spoke up. "We insist."

Warren finally nodded and smiled wryly at them. "Okay, give me a minute to ring it up."

Five minutes later they were all outside and about to get into the trucks when Charlie came running outside, grinning like a loon. "I was afraid I’d missed you!" he said quickly, giving them all a bright grin. "I can tell you right now we’ll take the job as whatever you want us to do, we just have to decide whether or not to finish out high school first – we’re both seniors – and tell our families we’re leaving."

Justin grinned at Charlie, pleased. "You could finish high school on the bus if you wanted, Lance and I both did, but take your time deciding. The job offer is open whenever you’re ready for it."

Lance nodded and glanced around the parking lot, then looked back at Charlie. "Officially we’re leaving day after tomorrow for Florida, but we’ll really be in the area until next Sunday if there’s anything you need." He grinned as he added, "Don’t hesitate to call us if you need anything at all. As far as we’re concerned you’re part of our team from the moment you accept the job, and we take care of our people."

Charlie grinned and nodded. "We will." He paused a second and then said in an awed tone, "Wow, not only did we meet you five tonight, but we got the chance at our dream jobs, too. We can never thank you enough."

JC smiled. "You don’t have to, Charlie, we really do need the help and we’d rather pick our own people than let Jive do it. Justin and I usually share an assistant most of the time because we have trouble keeping folks, but we’ve been without one at all for weeks now and Lance’s P.A. has had to do way too much for us."

Mike came out and gave them all quick grins as he walked up to stand right next to Charlie, then looked at him and said, "We gotta go, Char. Your mom just called spitting fire because it’s after midnight, and she threatened my life if you’re not home in fifteen minutes. The only reason she’s not ready to kill me now is because the boss told her he needed us to work this late for some special guests and that we’d just barely finished busing the last table."

Charlie made a face at Mike and asked rhetorically, "Why am I not surprised?" He looked at the guys hopefully then and asked, "Do your assistants have a curfew?"

Chris laughed. "Kid, you work for us and you’ll be up till two or three A.M. most nights, sometimes up ‘till dawn, and you’ll sleep the morning away on a bus unless we have something that day, in which case you’ll grab a couple hours sleep whenever you can just like we do. You’ll have all sorts of things you wind up having to do like making sure we have drinks on the bus or that our laundry gets done, and you’ll even wind up doing wonderfully glamorous things like buying toothpaste for us. And just so you know, even thought you’d be JC and Justin’s assistants you can bet Lance, Joey, and I will have you guys handle some things for us that we don’t want the girls Jive hired for us to do." He grinned at them and went on, "Of course, you’ll still have it easy compared to us. We get five or six hours sleep out of every twenty-four, live on junk food and cereal ninety percent of the time, and spend half of our time barreling down a highway at seventy miles an hour. I’d never live any other way though, we have the most fun!"

Joey nodded while Lance smiled at Mike and Charlie and added, "It’s hard work sometimes, but I think you’ll find it’s worth it."

"You should let ‘em go, guys," Lonnie said then, smiling at the two boys. "Don’t want to get them in trouble, right?"

Lance nodded quickly. "Right.” He looked back at Mike and Charlie, smiling. “Good night, and be sure to call if you need us to talk to your parents or you have any questions or need an advance or anything, okay?”

Mike nodded quickly and Charlie said, "Good night. We’ll see you again soon, count on it. Thanks again for the opportunity, we’ll make sure you don’t regret giving it to us."

Mike nodded again, grinning as he gave Charlie a push to get him moving and then they headed for an older model blue Geo Tracker parked on the far side of the lot.

Lance looked at Lonnie and Dre. "Do you want us to just follow you to the hotel?"

Lonnie nodded. "That’d be easiest I think, yeah."

The blue Tracker pulled out as Lance nodded at Lonnie, leaving the seven of them alone in the parking lot. Lance looked at JC, Justin, Joey, and Chris as he gestured to the truck. "Go on, get in! Justin, you can drive."

Joey pulled the keys from his pocket then and tossed them to Justin, who whooped and headed for the truck. JC grinned at Lance and then followed Justin, and Lance had to smile when he saw Joey and Chris both go to the back to let JC sit up front with Justin.

Lance looked at Lonnie then and saw his expression, and he grinned as he said, "Don’t worry, Lonnie. I’ll keep an eye on him. It’s only a few miles and it’s late enough there won’t be any traffic to speak of."

Lonnie gave him a wry grin. "I know, I was just remembering when you four were teaching him to drive."

Lance snickered. "There won’t be any collisions with you guys or anyone else tonight, I promise."

Lonnie snorted. "There better not be, and no more tickets for driving a hundred miles and hour in a forty zone either!" He turned and went to get in the truck with Dre without another word, pretending not to hear Lance snicker again.

Lance quickly went to get in the back seat with Joe and Chris, and soon Justin was following Dre out of the parking lot to head for the hotel.

 


	24. Chapter 24

  
~~~~24~~~~

 

The guys followed Scott to their hotel room twenty minutes later, all of them feeling the late hour as they finally reached the door even though they’d been up much later the night before. "Here you go," Scott said with a smile. "The three rooms to the left here are empty, and we have the rest of the hallway on the right so you don’t have to worry about gawkers when you use your balcony."

JC perked up, grinning as he opened the door. "We get a balcony? Cool!"

Lance grinned as he said, "Thanks a lot, Scotty. We’ll see you tomorrow."

Scott nodded, then smiled and waved as he left, saying, "No problem, you guys have fun. Night."

Lance waved to Scott and then closed the door behind him and followed JC and the other three into the suite, wondering if it would be as nice as he had been led to believe it would be. Just to the left of the door was a full kitchen with a low-slung breakfast bar, and to the right was the closed door to one of the bedrooms and the open bathroom door with the living room and balcony straight ahead. Lance walked past the kitchen and into the living room of the suite to see JC was already out on the balcony inhaling the salty air and grinning while Justin was looking at the entertainment center along the right wall with Chris, checking out the DVD player, VCR, Playstation 2, computer, and stereo that it held.

Lance looked around, wondering where Joey had disappeared to, and noticed the door on the other side of the entertainment center was open. He walked over to look into the room, and saw Joey was standing at an open sliding glass door, leaning against the doorjamb and looking out at the ocean with a smile. Lance crossed the room to stand by him and look out too, smiling softly. They didn’t really have a balcony as such since there was only about a foot of space behind the railing outside the doors, but they did have a beautiful moonlit view of the ocean and the beach below.

"Chris was right," Joey said, smiling at Lance as he pulled him into an embrace. "It’s beautiful here... Been too long since we were near the ocean, I’ve missed it."

Lance smiled up at Joey and moved into his arms willingly. "I think we all have. Florida spoiled us." Lance leaned up slightly to kiss Joey, and when they parted a few moments later they both turned to look out over the water, content just to enjoy the view and be together for a while.

Chris and Justin eventually got bored with the entertainment center and Chris went to check out the other bedroom while Justin joined JC on the main balcony. Justin walked silently up behind JC where he stood at the railing and wrapped his arms around the older man, propping his chin on JC’s shoulder to look out at the water with him.

Chris walked into the room where Joey and Lance were a minute later, grinning. "Lance, did you happen to think to ask what kind of beds were in the rooms, or just how many?"

Lance turned in surprise. "How many, why? There are supposed to be five, counting the pull-out in the couch."

Chris grinned at him and said, "The other room has three beds in it alright, but two are bunk beds that not even you or I could lay down on without hitting our heads. The other is a queen-sized bed though, so JC and Justin won’t have to sleep on the couch at least."

Joey grinned at Chris. "That’s cute, boy-sized beds for a boyband."

Lance snorted and made a face at Joey, not noticing it when Chris closed the door to the room and headed towards them. "No, it’s not. The receptionist I made the reservations with knew it would be the five of us staying here, she should have said something. We wanted to share anyway, but I’ll have to remember to complain."

Chris leaned up against Lance from behind then and grinned at Joey and he put his lips close to Lance’s ear and said quietly, "I can think of something I’d like to share..." Joey chuckled and leaned forward over Lance’s shoulder to kiss Chris as Chris’s hands slid between Joey and Lance to start working on Lance’s belt buckle. Joey and Chris both turned a moment later to concentrate on Lance, who didn’t object a bit as they guided him away from the window.

 

 

JC and Justin stood out on the balcony for a long time, just enjoying the view until they heard familiar noises coming from the open balcony next to the one they were on. Joey, Chris, and Lance were out of eyesight because of a decorative wall between the balconies, but they weren’t even close to being out of earshot. Justin nuzzled JC’s neck and nibbled lightly along a line of muscle, thinking the other three had the right idea and that he really wanted to see if he could get JC to make more noise than Chris did. Just the thought of what he’d have to do to JC to get him to moan like that was enough to make Justin pull JC’s hips back against him so he could grind slowly against him.

JC leaned back a bit to give him easier access to his neck even as he said softly, "We ought to go to our room, baby."

Justin kissed the red mark he’d just left on JC’s throat and then lifted his head to give JC a little smile as he said, "Why? It’s nice out here and nobody can see us." He leaned down and began nibbling and kissing his way down JC’s neck again then, leaving a damp trail as his hands roamed slowly across JC’s chest and stomach, sliding his t-shirt up.

JC leaned back against Justin a little more, enjoying what Justin was doing and making a soft noise in his throat a moment later when Justin’s right hand slid up under his shirt and found a nipple. JC shuddered when Justin nipped his collarbone lightly through his t-shirt and then Justin grinned, lifting his head to kiss JC’s lips. Justin’s left hand began to roam lower a moment later, brushing over tight denim and making JC moan softly into their kiss and move into the light pressure. JC’s hands reached back then to grab Justin’s thighs to pull him closer and Justin obligingly rocked his hips forward, groaning softly as he bumped against JC’s ass.

Justin pulled away from their kiss just slightly, his lips brushing against JC’s as he whispered softly, "God, you taste so good." He kissed JC again and then began kissing along his jaw, sucking gently at the slightly stubbled skin as his lips worked their way slowly towards the older man’s ear.

JC groaned and rocked his body between Justin’s hips and hand as he said softly, "I’ll feel even better, baby... Let’s go to bed so I can prove it."

Justin’s left hand pressed more firmly against the denim under his palm, rubbing slowly as he chuckled softly and moved to kiss JC again instead of answering him.

Chris spoke suddenly in the next room then, or maybe on the other balcony since JC and Justin could hear him so clearly. "I told you to _keep it_ , you moron! You’ll have to go get some out of Lance’s bag, we used all of mine." Lance said something they couldn’t quite hear and then they heard Joey laugh and say, "I have some," followed by the sound of a door opening.

Justin shifted to the other side of JC’s neck and began to nibble his way down his throat again, pressing his hand firmly against the denim over the hard bulge of JC’s erection as he rocked against him.

JC moaned softly as Justin thrust against him and then repeated softly, "Let’s go to bed, baby, please?"

The door to the room the other three shared closed again as Justin lifted his head, sliding his left hand up until both arms were around JC’s waist. "Okay." He smiled at JC and gave him a squeeze, then stepped back and took one of JC’s hands in his to lead him back into the suite, pausing only long enough for them to grab their bags on the way.

 

 

Joey woke up slowly the next morning, not at all surprised that Chris was sprawled over most of the left side of his body with a sheet draped over them. Chris had always been the cuddly type when given half a chance, so Joey really expected to wake up with Chris wrapped around him somehow, but the fact Lance was draped over the rest of him made Joey’s eyebrows go up a bit.

On the rare occasions they’d been able to stay together the whole night, Lance usually either let Joey spoon up behind him or curled up next to him, and he’d taken several nights to get comfortable doing even that. Lance had been with quite a few people before he and Joey got together, but he’d seldom had a steady boyfriend and never had stayed overnight with anyone. His only experiences with sleeping in the same bed with someone were from the early days of the group, and then they had all complained about being crowded so Lance had gotten into the habit of curling up into a ball to sleep when he had to share so he would take up as little room as possible.

Joey lifted his head a bit to look at the two pining him down, stifling a chuckle when he saw they were laying almost nose to nose. They were both using him as a full-body pillow, Lance with one leg draped across Joey’s right leg and Chris had his leg hooked around Joey’s left, effectively holding him still. Joey used his left hand – Lance was laying on his right arm too – to stuff a pillow behind his head to prop it up so he could see them, and he watched them sleep for a while, smiling and listening to the soft sound of seagulls coming from the open balcony door as he thought about how very lucky he was.

It was a while later – Joey couldn’t see the clock so he had no idea how long – when Chris stirred against him, tightening his arm around Joey’s waist and sighing softly before he opened his eyes and saw he was face to face with Lance. Chris watched him a moment before he lifted one hand to gently brush an eyelash off of Lance’s cheek, freezing when Lance moved into the caress and mumbled something unintelligible and then smiling when he didn’t wake up.

Chris glanced up at Joey then to see him watching with a smile. "Good morning," Chris mouthed at him, smiling back as he carefully shifted to move up and kiss Joey without waking Lance.

When they parted a long moment later Joey rubbed Chris’ back with his free hand and whispered almost soundlessly, "Mornin’. Sleep good?"

Chris nodded and shifted to lay on his side by Joey, propped up on one elbow so he could watch Lance sleep too. "I haven’t watched him sleep in years... He looks so young, and tired," Chris whispered softly a little while later, running a hand over Joey’s chest absently as he watched Lance sleep.

Joey nodded slightly. "He’s always the last to go to bed and the first awake. He needs this week off more than any of us."

Chris nodded and whispered, "We need to make sure he—" He was interrupted then by the strident ring of the phone behind him, and even though he quickly rolled to answer it Lance lifted his head with a groan, looking around to see what was going on.

"Hello?" Chris said impatiently into the phone, then listened to something for a long minute and rolled his eyes, feeling the shaking of the bed as the other two moved. "Tell them to fuck off. ... Yes I mean it, I heard him tell them not to call him until _next week_ , and he meant it. Meredith _knows_ that. ... I don’t care, just don’t bug him about it. ... Okay. ... No, we’ll call room service when we’ve had a chance to really wake up. ... I don’t care if it’s four o’clock, you still woke me up, and probably the others too since the phones in here are all on the same line. ... Well, I’m glad you’re sorry, Melinda, thank you. ... I dunno, check with the front desk to see if we’ve had breakfast before you call. ... Has Jo gotten any calls for us? .... Who from? ... Did he leave a number? What did he say?"

Chris listened a long moment, frowning slightly, then said, "Have her give him the number for our room when he calls back, and my cell number. ... Yes, I _know_ we never give out the room or cell numbers, give them to Mike _anyway_. ... Just do it, okay? ... Yes, I’m sure!" Chris took a deep breath, trying to control the urge to yell at Melinda, then said more calmly, "Thank you. ... It’s okay, you didn’t know we were asleep. Sorry if I bit your head off. ... Alright, talk to you later." He hung up and fiddled with the phone a moment, then turned back to Joey and Lance to see they were both sitting up, Lance with a pillow in his lap and Joey half-covered by the sheet.

"What did Melinda want?" Lance asked, still not completely awake but quickly headed there.

Chris snorted and moved across the bed on his hands and knees to kiss Lance instead of answering, sliding his tongue between Lance’s lips to lick at his tongue and then slowly explore his mouth. When he pulled away Lance was smiling, and Chris grinned at him as he said softly, "Mornin’, beautiful."

Lance blushed and smiled at him, his green eyes shining at the compliment. "G’mornin’, or afternoon I guess," he said, gesturing to the clock across the room that said it was nearly twelve thirty. "But you’re trying to change the subject, what did she want?"

Chris made a face. "Meredith just called her and made out like she was worried about you, and got Melinda to promise she’d call you right then to let you know she called. Jo talked to Mike this morning too, though... He called between classes and told her that he’d like to talk to one of us, and when she said we weren’t up yet he told her he’d call back around one when he gets out of school."

Lance frowned slightly. "He didn’t mention Charlie?"

Chris shook his head. "Not according to Melinda. Mike was only on the phone with Jo for a minute or two though. If there was something wrong he would have said something, I bet."

Lance looked thoughtful a minute and then smiled. "You’re right, and he’ll call back soon anyway so we’ll know for sure before long. Just enough time for a shower, if we hurry." He stretched and then tossed the pillow aside to stand and walk slowly to the bathroom, quite aware that Joey and Chris were both most likely staring at his ass. He paused at the door to the bathroom to look over his shoulder and saw Joey following him with a grin while Chris scrambled across the bed.

Lance chuckled and went into the bathroom, thinking that Chris seemed to be getting over his often-stated aversion to morning showers rather quickly.

 

 

By twelve-thirty JC and Justin had been awake almost two hours and already made love once, but they still weren’t in the mood to get out of bed yet. JC was laying stretched out on top of Justin when the phone rang, kissing him rather thoroughly as Justin’s hands roamed over JC’s body. JC threw back the sheet and pulled out of Justin’s arms with an annoyed groan to go answer it while Justin tried to catch his breath, and JC had just barely gotten over to it to answer when he realized it hadn’t rung a second time. He looked at it a second as though it might ring again now that he’d realized it should have, then shrugged and turned to move back towards Justin with a little grin as he said softly, "Someone else got it... Now baby, where was I?"

Justin chuckled as JC crawled over him and said, "Right here," reaching to pull him closer until JC was laying on top of him again. JC smiled at him and began kissing Justin again as Justin’s hands cupped his ass, pulling him down as Justin lifted his hips to meet him. JC groaned and moved against him, then began kissing his way down Justin’s neck as Justin’s hands slowly started to roam over his body again.

They’d been making out and then playing for fifteen minutes or so when the phone rang again, making JC groan in annoyance. Justin lifted his head to give it a dirty look at the second ring, then lowered his head to JC’s chest again, nibbling delicately at one nipple as he lightly ran the fingers of his right hand down JC’s ribs, making the older man squirm and giggle. JC reached for Justin to tickle him in retaliation, sure that Lance would answer the phone, but it didn’t stop ringing and after the fourth ring Justin finally moved away from JC with an annoyed growl to go pick it up. JC got up too and moved over to kiss Justin’s shoulder as Justin sat back down on the edge of the bed, wondering who it was and why Lance hadn’t answered the phone.

"Hello?" Justin said into the phone as he sat down, not sounding too happy as JC’s arms slid around him from behind, but he almost immediately grinned and changed his tone completely. "Oh hey, Mike! No, no, it’s fine... We’ve been up an hour or two, we were just goofing off. What can I do for you?" Justin listened a minute, then nodded and said, "Okay, lemme go find Lance, he’ll know all of that and anything else you’ll need to know too. Here, why don’t you talk to JC while I go find him?"

JC let go of him and pulled back a bit to let Justin stand, then took the offered phone and watched Justin go pick up his boxers off the floor as he said, "Hi! How are you guys doing?"

"Great!" Mike replied, sounding happy. "I talked to my parents last night and they were glad to get rid of me, just like we thought they would be, but Charlie’s mom is really excited about it. She’s really glad we’ve got the opportunity to get into dancing professionally, and that I’m going too so Char won’t be taking off alone. I don’t know how to thank you, this means the world to him."

JC grinned as he said, "Just do your best for us, Mike, that’s all we ask... Well, besides keeping certain things to yourself but I know you’ll do that. Have you talked to Warren about leaving?"

"Yeah," Mike replied immediately, "we called him at lunch. I have to be at work in an hour or so, and then Charlie’ll be out of school in a couple of hours and we’ll work tonight until closing at the restaurant, but today was our last day. The boss is still amazed that you guys hired us, but he’s happy for us and told us to tell you that you’re welcome for dinner anytime you’re in town."

JC chuckled. "I understand working tonight so you won’t leave Warren without any help, but if you’re going to come with us now – and that’s great, we really do need you! – why did you two go to school today?"

Mike laughed. "Well, I didn’t want to, but it was the last day of semester tests and Charlie thought we should finish them so the scores could go on our records. He’ll make great grades as usual, but I’m gonna count myself lucky if I just passed everything."

JC laughed. "I remember that feeling so well! I was so bad at math that by the time I got out of high school _Justin_ was tutoring me. Without him to explain it over and over again I would have failed Algebra 2 the second time too, I just know it."

Mike chuckled just as JC heard the distinctive sound of someone picking up the other phone and then Lance’s slightly breathless voice saying, "I’ve got it, Josh."

"Okay," JC said, "See you later, Mike!"

"Soon I hope," Mike answered, and then JC hung up as Justin walked back into the room grinning.

JC raised an eyebrow at him and rose to meet him. "And what are you so tickled about?"

Justin pulled JC’s still naked body against him and grinned as he said, "Lance was in the shower. He and Joey were, uh, busy, but Lance didn’t stay."

JC chuckled. "I bet that went over well."

Justin nodded and smirked. "Yeah, but Chris’ll handle it, just like I’m gonna handle you." He kissed JC then, reaching around to grab JC’s ass and pull him even closer as the older man’s hands began to roam over Justin’s body. They stood there kissing for a while, tongues slowly exploring each others mouths until JC finally pulled back a bit to smile at Justin.

"What’d Mike need?" he asked, rubbing his hands slowly up and down Justin’s back.

Justin smiled and kissed him again before he said, "He just wanted to talk to Lance about how to go about doing a drug test and a security check before we officially hire them, and I had no clue. Did he mention whether they’re taking the job now or not?"

JC grinned at him and nodded. "Yup! He said they have to work tonight, and then they’re ready for anything we need them to do."

Justin returned the grin. "Great! They oughta be able to show us which places around town we can get into without too much trouble. I want to go to a mall while we’re here, and Chris already said he wants to go shopping too."

JC smiled. "I’m sure they can show us around." He gave Justin another kiss then and pulled away to head for where their bags were on the bottom bunk of the other bed as he said, "I don’t know about you, baby, but I need a shower. Someone," he looked pointedly at Justin, who just grinned, "keeps getting me all sweaty. You wanna join me?"

JC looked over his shoulder as he opened his bag and watched Justin walk across the room to open his own suitcase as he said, "Of course I do, and then we can order breakfast. How does biscuits and gravy sound?" Justin pulled a pair of jeans and a t-shirt out of his bag quickly, then dug towards the back of the bag to get clean boxers as he waited for JC to answer.

JC looked up again when he had a full set of clothes for the day and grinned at Justin. "What, I get to eat what I want today?" He moved over to the bed to drop his clothes long enough to pull on his jeans from the night before.

Justin snorted, then grinned. "Well, as long as you actually order a meal, yeah."

JC chuckled and picked his clothes up again as he started towards the door to their room. "I’m hungry, baby. I promise I’ll order real food... It’ll be waffles or something though, I never have understood your fascination for biscuits and gravy."

JC made a face and went out into the living room, followed quickly by Justin as he said, "Hey! Biscuits and gravy is _good_!"

Lance looked up from where he was sitting on the couch in his underwear talking on a cell phone, smiling and waving good morning as he said, "Yeah, Lonnie, I think they’re clean too, but they wanted to prove it to us so there would be no doubts. Mike gave me their information for you to run a security check, and they’re both going in for a physical and a drug test tomorrow." Lance smiled at JC and Justin as they waved and disappeared into the bathroom, then went on talking to Lonnie. "Yeah, it was their idea, they want it all up front which I think is great. I really like these two, I’m glad we ran into them. .. Yes, that’s right, they are and they know how it is so I think we can trust them. ... They told us after they caught Justin and JC kissing. ... I know, we talked to them about it, they’re gonna be more careful. ... Yeah, I’ve got their social security numbers and everything right here, send someone over here after them and you can get started on that. ... Thanks, I appreciate it."

Lance hung up Chris’ cellphone and put it down on the coffee table before he stood and stretched, then walked over to the balcony doors to look out at the ocean a minute, wondering how they’d spend the afternoon. He hadn’t planned anything for their week off, but he had run on a tight schedule for so long that having nothing to do for the day made him a bit uncomfortable. Sure, they had vague plans to go shopping and to spend at least one day at the beach later in the week, and they were supposed to be guests of honor and judges at a shag contest Friday night, but still... That left a lot of free time, and every time Lance thought about it he had to consciously fight the urge to plan it all out.

Joey, already dressed, walked out of their bedroom a few minutes later to wrap his arms around Lance from behind. He looked out at the ocean over Lance’s shoulder as he smiled and murmured, "What are we looking for?"

Lance chuckled and turned to slide his arms up around Joey’s neck. "Nothing, just wondering what we’d do today. Did you two have fun?"

Joey grinned. "Well, yeah, but we would have had more fun with you there." He kissed Lance then, running his hands over Lance’s back and holding him close.

Neither of them heard Chris when he walked out of their room to join them, but when they pulled apart several minutes later he was standing close by and smiling at them. "We missed you," he said to Lance as he put an arm around him and the other around Joey. He leaned in close to kiss Lance as the younger man moved one of his hands to Chris’ cheek. Joey smiled at them and slipped one arm around Chris so that they were in a three-way embrace, then just watched them kiss.

After a long moment Lance broke the kiss and smiled at them as he said softly, "I don’t say it often enough, but I love you, both of you, more than I could explain."

Joey and Chris exchanged a smile and then both looked at Lance as Joey said, "And we love you just as much."

Chris nodded, smiling. "There’s nobody in the world we’d rather be with." Lance gave him a beautiful smile that lit up his clear green eyes, then Chris grinned and asked, "Can we just be with you a little farther from the balcony?"

Joey chuckled as Lance grinned and then kissed each of them quickly before he pulled away. "I need to go get dressed anyway. Why don’t you two see if you can find the room service menu? There ought to be one in the kitchen... And think about what you’d like to do today, okay?"

They both nodded and Lance headed into their room to get dressed, leaving them standing together a few feet inside the balcony door looking out at the ocean. Chris watched a seagull for a moment, then turned away from the balcony and leaned up to kiss Joey’s cheek before pulling away to head for the kitchen with Joey right behind him.

 


	25. Chapter 25

  
~~~~25~~~~

 

Lance, Joey, and Chris were sitting at the low breakfast bar when Justin walked out of the bathroom about thirty minutes later with his and JC’s dirty clothes. They looked up in time to see him duck into his room for just a second before he came back out and walked over to join them, flopping down in the remaining chair. "G’morning," he said with a grin. "What’s for breakfast?"

Lance chuckled and pushed a piece of cardboard towards him. "See for yourself. The selection isn’t as good as yesterday, but it’s passable... We already ordered and a bellboy is supposed to bring another chair up soon."

JC came out of the bathroom then and walked over to put his arms around Justin from behind, bending down to set his chin on Justin’s shoulder as he grinned at them. "Mornin’ guys."  He looked down at the menu in front of Justin, curious and hopeful.

"They have waffles, babe." Justin turned his head a little to look at JC with a smile.

Lance, Joey, and Chris watched them with indulgent looks, sure JC and Justin were about to have their daily ‘you need to eat a meal, no I don’t want to’ debate.

JC nodded. "Yup, and with strawberries too, which sounds really good. What are you gonna have?"

The other three looked at JC in surprise – he usually at least attempted to get out of having to eat a whole meal for breakfast – as Justin shrugged and said, "I dunno, bacon and eggs I guess."

JC moved next to Justin and took the menu from him to flip it to see what the rest of it had on it as he said, "I thought you wanted biscuits and gravy?"

Justin slipped an arm around JC and pulled him easily onto his lap, grinning as he replied, "Well I did, but I changed my mind already. Hotels _never_ make it like momma does."

JC chuckled and squirmed slightly to get more comfortable as Lance teased, "I told you they’re bringing another chair, Justin."

Chris nodded, smirking. "Yeah kid, I know he’s skinny, but he’s still a bit too big to sit in your lap all the time."

JC looked up from the menu, grinning, just as Justin spoke. "He’s not heavy, and besides, this way I’ve got him right where I want him."

Justin gave them a wicked grin and leaned forward to nibble the side of JC’s neck, making JC giggle and squirm as he tried to scrunch his neck down into his shoulders. "Baby quit, that tickles!"

Justin chuckled and kissed just below his ear before he said softly, "You weren’t complaining when I tickled you earlier... I seem to recall you liked it." He switched sides and kissed JC’s throat as JC blushed and didn’t answer, looking studiously at the menu to avoid the knowing grins of the other three.

Lance looked at Chris, amused but wanting to change the subject before Chris teased JC any more. "Okay, back to today... I still say we ought to wait until we’re staying on Pawley’s to we go shopping, after people think we’ve left for Florida."

Chris looked mulish as Justin looked up from JC’s neck and said, "And Mike and Charlie can show us around if we wait until they’re here. I’m sure they know where all the best places to go are."

Chris brightened at that. "Hey, yeah, you’re right! Those two are gonna come in handy this week."

There was a knock at the door then and JC quickly got off Justin’s lap, walking around into the kitchen to hop up on the counter as Lance made his way to the door. Lance opened the door and said, "Hey great, come on in..."

He backed up and held the door open as a uniformed man carried in a chair like the ones already in the room. "We’re terribly sorry about that, sirs," the man said as he put it down on the kitchen side of the bar. "There was a note in the computer to be sure there were accommodations for five in here, so there should have been. Is everything else satisfactory?"

JC slid off the counter and moved to the chair with a grin, nodding. "Thanks."

The bellhop smiled. "You’re quite welcome sir."

He looked expectantly at the others then and Lance nodded and said, "We can live with the rest, yeah, we’ll only be here a couple days... We’d appreciate it if someone would bring up more towels sometime today though, with the five of us using them we go through them pretty fast."

The bellhop nodded, smiling at him. "Certainly sir, I’ll see to it myself right now. If you think of anything else call the front desk and someone will be right up."

Lance thanked him again and the bellhop left, but just as Lance got back to his chair to sit down room service arrived with breakfast for him, Joey and Chris. Justin got up then to go order breakfast for himself and JC, and then he sat back down to continue talking to the others about what to do that day.

 

 

 

An hour later the bellhop had delivered the towels and cleared away their breakfast dishes, and the five of them were sitting around the bar as they discussed what to do with the afternoon. "We could go to the park," Joey said suddenly as he looked up from a pamphlet he’d been reading about the Grand Strand, interrupting Justin and Chris’ argument about whether they should do go-karts or miniature golf.

Everyone looked at him in surprise – he hadn’t said a word in thirty minutes or more – and he grinned. "What? I have ideas too! There’s a state park a few miles south, I saw the sign last night, and according to this it’s supposed to be right on the beach with over 300 acres of nature trails and stuff. If it’s like most parks it oughta be deserted on a Monday, and going for a long walk sounds nice."

JC nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yeah, that sounds great! We haven’t gotten to spend a day outside in forever, and when we get tired of walking we can find a nice spot to just sit and enjoy the sun, or swim or something."

Justin nodded, grinning because he had his own ideas of ‘or something’.

Chris shrugged and said, "Sure, why not... Better than go-karts any day."

Lance grinned at Joey and stood up as he said, "Thanks Joe, the park sounds great to me too. I thought they were going to waste the whole afternoon arguing." He moved over by Joey and kissed him quickly, then kissed Chris too before he started for the door saying, "I’ll go tell Lonnie and let him decide how many guys he wants us to take while y’all get your stuff together." He paused at the door and grinned at JC as he said, "Josh, if we’re that close to the ocean we all know you’ll wind up in the water, so make sure you have a change of clothes and a towel to put in Justin’s backpack, okay?"

JC grinned and nodded as he jumped up and started for his room. "I will!"

Lance chuckled and left as Justin rose to follow JC, thinking he’d need a change of clothes too. If JC was going to play in the water, Justin surely wasn’t planning to stand back and just watch.

Joey and Chris looked at each other after the other three left the room and then Chris stood and moved over to squeeze in between Joey and the bar and put his hands on Joey’s shoulders. "That was a good idea, Joe-bear. Lance might even relax if it’s just us, the water and some trees."

Joey chuckled and slid his arms around Chris’ waist. "That’s the general idea, yeah. He’s still a country boy at heart and he’ll love a walk in the woods even though he’d never ask for it. We’ll all enjoy it I think... JC loves anything that involves nature, and Justin never gets enough of anything that makes JC happy.” Joey smiled, brown eyes sparkling as he added softly, “And you like long quiet walks, even though you’d never admit it."

Chris smiled and leaned down then to kiss Joey, pulling back slightly after a long moment to murmur, "I admitted it to you."

Joey chuckled. "You also admitted to me you like to wear makeup and dress up like a punk, but I don’t see you telling the whole world."

Chris grinned, leaning back a bit more so that his butt was against the bar. "Punking out is fun, and the makeup is part of the whole goth thing, you _have_ to have it to get the vibe right. It’s not like I put on a pound of blush or something, just some eyeliner and eyeshadow and maybe a little—"

Joey chuckled and stood, interrupting Chris with a kiss as he picked him up and sat him on the edge of the breakfast bar. Chris made a low noise after a moment and hooked his feet around behind Joey’s thighs, pulling him closer as he slid both hands up into Joey’s short, spiky hair. Joey tightened his hold on Chris’ hips, pulling him closer to the edge of the bar again as he thrust his tongue into Chris’ mouth and then growling softly when Chris sucked hard on it.

The two of them were so completely absorbed in each other that they didn’t notice when JC and Justin came back out of their room after they’d changed into shorts, or even when Lance and Dre walked in just after that. They probably wouldn’t even have noticed if Carson Daly walked in with a full camera crew.

After a few more minutes it became obvious Chris and Joey hadn’t heard the others come in, and Lance was the first to say something, grinning as he watched them. "Chris, let him up for air."

Chris opened his eyes without breaking the kiss and pulled a hand out of Joey’s hair to flip Lance off, making Dre chuckle, but Lance just smirked and said, "You going senile on us, old man? You already did, don’t you remember?"

Justin, JC, and Dre all started laughing then as Joey chuckled and pulled away from Chris as far as he could considering Chris’ legs were rather firmly wrapped around his waist. "Critter, did you just flip our baby boy off?"

Chris gave him his best wide-eyed innocent look, resting both hands on Joey’s shoulders. "Who, me?!"

Joey snorted and grinned. "Don’t give me that look, you can’t pull it off."

Chris grinned. "Hey, it was worth a shot. You can put me down now, y’know."

Joey’s eyebrows went up and he looked pointedly down at Chris’ legs. "I would if you’d let me go."

Chris laughed. "Oops." He unlocked his ankles and let his feet drop to thump against the counter underneath him as Joey settled back into his seat again and looked at Lance.

"When do we go?" Joey asked, grinning.

Lance started across the room. "Just as soon as I get my stuff and you guys get some shoes on." He disappeared into his room to go empty the electronics out of his backpack – there was no way he wanted his laptop near the beach! – and put a change of clothes for each of them and a couple of towels in it instead. He figured that JC wasn’t the only one who’d wind up wet and he really didn’t want their Expedition’s seats soaked again. Last time the detail shop that cleaned the truck out had sold their trash, and there was really no telling what they’d find this time.

Dre leaned against the wall by the door with a grin and watched as Joey and Chris both followed Lance to go find their shoes, leaving him alone with JC and Justin, who walked over to stand near him.

"Who all’s going with us?" Justin asked Dre, smiling as he shifted his bundle of clothes.

Dre grinned. "Just me and Scotty. The boss called and talked to the guy in charge of the park, and he said he hasn’t seen anyone all day,. You picked the perfect day for it from the sound of it. There aren’t any school groups scheduled, and no one is using the camping area."

JC grinned. "It was Joey’s idea."

Dre chuckled and then they waited in silence for a few minutes until they heard a shriek of girlish laughter from the open door to Joey, Lance and Chris’ room. Justin’s eyebrows went up and he looked at JC, both of them asking at the same time, "Was that Lance?!" They grinned and said,"Jinx!" again in perfect unison before they both started laughing.

Dre just grinned and pretended he didn’t hear Lance as he shreiked again and exclaimed, "Joe! Put me down!" but JC and Justin both just grinned wickedly and Justin turned towards the other room.

"You need some help in there?" Justin called, grinning.

"Yes!" Lance called amidst giggling as they heard Joey chuckle.

"NO!" Chris yelled, making Justin and JC both grin a little wider.

Lance shrieked with laughter again then and they could hear Joey and Chris both laughing, then there was a thud followed by a loud thump as something hit one of the walls. A moment later Lance ran out of the room with his backpack, flushed red and still giggling, the other two following him with huge grins on their faces. Lance went straight to JC and Justin and hid between them and the wall. "Guys, help!"

Justin and JC turned towards him to give him almost identical wide-eyed looks, both grinning. "Help what?" Justin asked, "Them?"

Joey and Chris moved up on either side of JC and Justin so that all four were standing almost close enough to Lance to reach him, with Joey cutting him off on one side and Chris on the other by Dre so he had nowhere to go.

Lance’s pretty green eyes got a little wider. "Justin, don’t you dare! Dre, don’t let these four maul me, please."

Dre raised both hands with a laugh. "Oh no boss, I know better than that. You’re not draggin’ me into this!"

Lance gave him a dirty look. "Lot of help you are! Would you let our fans tickle me to death too?"

Dre grinned. "Nope, but _these_ four are _your_ problem, boss. I’ll be out in the hall." He grinned at them and left as Chris and Joey exchanged wicked grins and moved towards Lance, whose eyes were as big as saucers.

Lance shook his head at them and held his backpack up in front of him as a shield, shrinking back against the wall even more and wishing that they didn’t think tickling him was so funny. He couldn’t help it that he squealed and giggled like a girl, he’d tried.

JC took pity on Lance then and said, "C’mon guys, you know how he hates to be tickled. If we’re ready why don’t we just go ahead and go?"

Lance gave him a grateful look and then looked quickly at Joey again as he stepped towards Lance, his eyes full of mischief. "Joe," Lance pleadingly said, "please?"

Joey grinned and put a hand on either side of Lance’s head on the wall, smirking. "I won’t tickle you if I can have a kiss."

Lance looked relieved and smiled. "Deal." Lance moved forward and Joey let his arms drop to slip them around Lance’s waist as they kissed.

Chris watched them a long moment, pouting until he finally said, "That’s not fair, Joe. I wanted to tickle him some more, and you _know_ I can’t hold him down by myself anymore since he went and got all buff on us."

Joey pulled away from Lance with a chuckle then and looked at Chris, taking one hand from Lance’s waist to reach for him. "C’mere, you. A happy Scoop is at least as much fun as a giggly one, I promise."

Chris pouted a second longer as Lance smiled hopefully at him, then gave in and stepped over to put a hand on the back of Lance’s neck and kiss him while Joey leaned in to nuzzle Lance’s neck on the other side.

JC and Justin watched them, grinning, but after a few minutes they didn’t look like they were even considering stopping so JC said, "Guys? Let’s go, I’ll drive so you can make out in the truck if you want."

Joey pulled away from Lance then and Chris did the same with a little annoyed noise a few seconds later. Lance smiled, his light green eyes bright as he looked at Joey and Chris while he told JC, "We can wait until later, I’m sure we’ll take a break on our walk sooner or later."

Joey nodded as Chris leaned in and gave Lance another quick kiss, then headed back towards their room. "I’ll go find my shoe and then we can go."

JC and Justin looked at each other and then his feet as he walked away and both started laughing when they saw he was only wearing one shoe. Lance crossed the room to the coffee table then to pick up Chris’ cell phone and stick it in his bag before he rejoined the other three at the door to wait for Chris.

Chris hadn’t come back yet when there was a knock on the door and Joey, looking surprised, turned to go open it as he asked, "Are we expecting anyone?"

Lance, JC, and Justin all said ‘no’, and then Joey pulled the door open to see Joanna standing there with a luggage cart piled with several boxes of various sizes and a mailbag. "Hi Joey!" Joanna said with a grin. "I know you’re on the way out, I just thought I should bring these over so you can get the box from your mom back in the fridge... It had ice in it when we got it yesterday morning, and I had it in the fridge on our bus so it’s still cold. "

Joey grinned and stepped back. "C’mon in!"

Joanna smiled and started forward into the suite. "The box from Britney’s mom is here too, it’s the next biggest one."

"Great," Lance said with a grin as he moved over to the breakfast bar. "Just roll the cart over here. We’ll open the boxes now and then go through the mail when we get back."

Joanne did as he’d asked and the guys started unloading it for her as Chris came out of the bedroom, grinning when he saw the boxes. "Hey, great, presents!"

Joanne giggled and lifted a smaller box off the pile to hand it to him. "This one’s yours Chris, it’s from FuMan."

"Thanks! I’ve been waiting on this." Chris took it with a big grin and crossed the kitchen to look in the drawers for a knife.

JC sat a medium-sized Fed-Ex box on the table then. "Hey Jup, this one’s from your girl. What’s she sending you?"

Justin looked surprised. "I dunno... Her mom sent a care package for everyone but Brit didn’t mention she was sending anything herself." He walked over to take the box as Joey and Lance finished unloading the cart, then he looked over at Chris and said, "Hey man, hand me that knife when you’re done."

Chris looked up from carefully slitting the tape on his box open and said, "Here, I got it now," as he deftly flipped the knife in his hand and offered Justin the handle.

"There’s a box for you too, Josh," Lance said then, grinning as he offered it to JC.

JC looked at him and took the box which was identical to Justin’s but much lighter, then grinned as he saw who it was from. "Hey, Britters sent me something, too. I wonder what it is?"

"Bye guys, enjoy," Joanna said then, grinning as she steered the cart back to the door, getting distracted waves from Joey and Chris as they opened the box from Joey’s mom and a smile from Lance before he turned back to watch the others.

Justin had just finished cutting the tape on his box and sat it on the edge of the table to open it as Joanna closed the door, wondering why the box was so heavy for it’s size. "I have no clue, Josh. Brit didn’t mention them to me..." He lifted the flaps on the box and laughed, turning red as he quickly closed it back before anyone else saw what was in it. He looked up to be sure Joanna had left again and then looked at JC and said, "Babe, you may want me to open that. There’s no telling what it is, Brit’s being sassy."

JC grinned and picked up the knife from where Justin had put it on the table. "Nuh-uh, it’s my box!"

Justin grinned. "Okay, but I warned you."

Lance grinned and watched as JC began to cut the tape on his box, wondering what Brit had sent Justin that made him turn so red and why he thought she’d send JC something just as bad.

JC opened the flaps on the box a minute later to lift a letter off of the styrofoam peanuts the box held, then unfolded it and, after scanning it quickly, read it aloud.

 

~~~  
 _Hey Sweetie!_

 _Justin probably has his box open by now, make sure he shares it. I hope y_ _’_ _all don_ _’_ _t run out... Wade said this ought to last you a while but going by how he goes through the stuff I_ _’_ _m not so sure. I_ _’_ _ll send more anyway when Daniel gets back, he_ _’_ _s going to buy a few boxes at a little place he likes while he_ _’_ _s in Jersey visiting his sister._

 _This is supposed to be your week off, Josh, so have lots of fun for me while I_ _’_ _m stuck up here doing PR crap! You and Juppy had better stop making like bunnies long enough to leave your room at least once a day to eat and do something fun with the guys, okay? If you don_ _’_ _t I_ _’_ _ll find out, and I_ _’_ _ll fly down and drag you both out to go shopping or something, I promise! Tell Poofu I said he has to actually take some time off this week too, and don_ _’_ _t let Chris and Joe dance the night away every night, y_ _’_ _all have to do that enough on tour. And sweetheart, don_ _’_ _t get yourself killed when you go surfing, okay?_

 _Enjoy your box Josh, Daniel got this for me at a little shop in the village before he left... I think it_ _’_ _s the best, and Danny told me to be sure I told you it_ _’_ _s dual purpose, whatever that means._

 _Tell everyone I said hi and give them all a hug, and kiss the baby for me._

 _Love ya! xoxoxo  
Brit_  
~~~

 

Lance laughed as he looked at Justin – who Lance figured must be the baby Brit mentioned – while Justin stared at JC with wide eyes.

"I’m supposed to share this?!" Justin asked incredulously.

Chris and Joey looked up from lifting tupperware containers out of Joey’s box to grin at the look on Justin’s face.

Justin didn’t even notice them as he went on, "I’m not sure I even want to let these goons _see_ what’s in the box after that letter, I’ll never hear the end of it!"

JC just grinned as he put the note on the table. "That’s what she said though, baby, so share already," reaching for Justin’s box.

Justin grabbed it and hid it behind his back as he shook his head. "Oh no, I wanna know what she sent you first, _then_ you can see mine."

JC grinned and picked his box back up to dig through styrofoam peanuts before he pulled out a small green jar and looked at the label, which said ‘mint’ in ornate script and had a paintbrush on it. He stared at it for a moment with absolutely no recognition before he sat it on the table and pulled another from the box, and then another. When he’d finished digging through the box he had seven small jars, each with a label: strawberry, orange, bananna, mint, blueberry, dark chocolate and white chocolate.

JC figured they must be food going by the labels, but otherwise he was lost until Chris craned his head to see the bottles past the boxes on the table and said, "Little bit bought y’all flavored _body paints_?! Too cool!"

Chris smirked at them while JC turned red and gave Justin a wide-eyed look, and Lance sat down abruptly in one of the chairs as he started giggling like a girl. A ditzy girl. Who’d had too much sugar. _And_ too much to drink.

Justin shook his head vehemently, looking at JC as he said, "I did _not_ tell her to buy that, honest! Daniel or Wade must have given her the idea, she’s always talking about the screwy stuff they bring on the bus." Justin offered JC his box as he went on, "You may as well look in my box now too though, and get it over with. I didn’t tell her to get this either, but I’m glad she did. I didn’t have any to begin with and you’re almost out."

JC gave him a funny look and took the box, opening it slowly almost as though he expected something to jump out at him. When he saw the contents his face went even deeper scarlet and he blurted, "Jesus! She sent that much lube and she’s afraid we’ll _run out_?! What does she think we’re gonna do with it?!"

Chris and Joey whooped with laughter as Lance dissolved into giggles again, gasping out, "She said ... she thinks ... you two ... are making like ... bunnies!"

Chris nodded rapidly. "Slippery bunnies!" Chris and Joe laughed even harder at that, while Lance giggled helplessly.

Justin grinned as how funny the situation was finally sank in, then chuckled at the look on JC’s face as he looked into the box again.

JC still didn’t quite believe Brit – a sweet girl he’d known since she was _twelve_ , for pete’s sake – had sent them enough lube to last _anyone_ a few months and was worried it wouldn’t last him a _week_. JC noticed after a moment that there were several different kinds in the box, and he reached in to turn one so he could read the label, his eyes going a bit wider if that was possible. ‘ _Flavored lubricant? As if the body paints weren_ _’_ _t enough?!_ ’

Joey was the first to recover from laughing, his brown eyes sparkling merrily as he said, "Guys, she told you to share, so don’t hide the box, okay?"

JC looked up at him wide-eyed and Chris nodded, grinning as he said, "Yeah, we used all of Lance’s stash already and most of Joe’s, and I was out to begin with."

Lance tried hard to stop giggling as JC looked at him in surprise – JC knew Lance usually bought things like that by the box because he was embarrassed to buy them often – and Lance managed to get his face almost straight even though his green eyes shone with laughter.

Justin grinned at Joey and Chris as he took the box from JC. "I’ll put it on the counter in the bathroom, okay?"

Joey grinned and Chris nodded. "That’s great," Joey said. "Next time you talk to Brit, tell her we said thanks."

Justin nodded and started towards the bathroom to put the box away, still grinning.

Lance smirked as he called to Justin, "Yeah, and tell her we’d welcome any little care packages she wants to send our way too." Chris and Joey started laughing again as JC sat down heavily in the chair he’d been standing next to, still looking a little shocked.

Justin walked back out of the bathroom a moment later and moved over to JC, resting a hand on his shoulder as he asked, "You okay?"

JC looked up, still wide-eyed but not looking quite so shocked. "Yeah, I’m just... surprised. Brit always seemed so _sweet_ and _innocent_..."

Justin laughed. "Josh, sweetheart, think about it. How many girls her age would willingly sing and dance half naked with a snake more than once? Brit makes these three," he gestured to the others, "look like choirboys."

Lance chuckled as Joey and Chris both grinned and JC finally smiled too as Chris asked, "Y’know, Justin, I’ve been wondering... If she’s not with you, then who is the lucky dude who gets her to ‘dance up on him’ every night?"

Joey started unloading their box of goodies from his mom again then, listening and grinning as he put lasagna and cannelloni in the fridge with the dozen or so other tupperware dishes of homemade pasta, roast and sweets.

Justin looked over at Chris and grinned. "Well, that’s where it gets a little complicated. See, Brit is in love with Wade, who loves her too but he’s been with Genoa and Daniel for a couple years and doesn’t wanna leave them. Daniel is gay, but Wade and Gen both swing both ways, and Gen and Daniel don’t mind sharing him so Wade’s been with Brit whenever he could for months now. Brit wound up sharing a bus with Gen and Daniel on the last tour, and Wade started staying over more and more often, either with Brit or the other two. Wade got them all together a couple months ago and Brit’s been having a blast since."

Lance grinned. "There’s something I’ve been wondering too, and knowing you two I’m sure Brit’s told you... Is Wade as good in bed as his dancing suggests?"

JC looked at Lance in surprise then and missed the wicked grin Justin gave Lance. "Brit says he’s even better, but I’m sure Wade would be glad to prove it. From what she says he’s very into the whole ‘free love’ idea."

Chris laughed. "What nineteen year old guy isn’t?"

Joey chuckled and nodded, putting the last tupperware container in the fridge as he thought about some of the things he’d done when he was nineteen.

Justin grinned back at Chris and was about to speak when JC said, "I wasn’t, and Justin sure wasn’t, and I kind of doubt Lance was doing that many people when he was nineteen... Right?" JC looked at Lance then, hoping Lance wouldn’t say he was wrong because it would really mess up his whole mental picture of his friend. Well, okay, mess it up worse.

Lance gave him an innocent look – he could actually pull it off – and said, "I was a good boy. That’s what Ritchie told me, anyhow, and I figure he wouldn’t lie to me."

JC looked lost and asked, "Who’s Ritchie?"

Chris laughed. "Dude, you were doing the _pyro guy_?!"

Lance grinned. "Well, yeah, but it was before we hired him as the pyro guy, during the break before the NSA tour. Ritchie lived in Orlando then, and I met him when I started going to Oz... You guys know about Oz, right?" He looked at Joey and Chris, who both grinned and nodded.

"Oh yeah," Joey said, "we used to go there all the time back before the group. Does Keith still run the place?"

Lance nodded while JC just looked lost.

Justin grinned and said, "Spill!! What’s Oz?"

Chris smirked and said, "It’s a club, one of the better ones I think. It’s very ... out. Oz makes Tabu look like a teeny club, but it’s got the best music and _anything_ goes up on the balcony."

Justin grinned and looked at JC. "We gotta go there sometime, babe."

JC was about to speak – probably to say no – when there was a knock on the door and then Dre stuck his head in to grin at them and say. "Boss? We still going?"

Lance jumped up and started for the door. "Yeah, we are, we just got sidetracked. Guys, grab your stuff." Joey and Chris headed after Lance immediately, and JC and Justin picked their extra clothes up off the counter and followed them.

 

 


	26. Chapter 26

  
~~~~26~~~~

 

They discussed who would drive in the elevator on the way down, and finally decided to let Chris drive with Justin riding shotgun so nobody would be tempted to do anything in broad daylight. JC told them on the way out to the trucks that he needed to stop at the Wal-Mart down the road and run in for just a minute, and after a quick discussion Dre decided he could if he wore the hat Chris had gotten in the mail – a denim fisherman’s hat that Chris said made JC look like a prettier version of Gilligan – and Joey went in with him. Dre wanted to go himself but he recognized that he or Scott in a store with JC would be too obviously a bodyguard, and he knew Joey could handle most problems if he had to so he reluctantly agreed to let them go.

When they stopped at Wal-Mart, JC dug his wallet out of Justin’s backpack and then got out with Joey to talk to Dre before they went in, listening as he said they had twenty minutes and then he and Scott would come in after them anyway. Joey promised then to make JC come back to the truck before that even if he had to carry him and Dre chuckled and let them go.

Not quite fifteen minutes later JC and Joey came back out, Joey carrying a bag and a box and JC with two bags, both of them grinning like idiots. When they got back in the truck Lance spoke first, amused. "Josh, why did you need another CD player? Isn’t that identical to the one you have one on the bus?"

Justin spoke up from his spot in the front seat as Chris started the truck, looking over his shoulder at Lance. "It died."

JC nodded, busy taking the small portable CD stereo out of it’s box. "Yeah, it wouldn’t work when I wanted to use it at that place in Chicago, and when I looked to see if I could figure out what was wrong I saw the lens-thing was cracked so I threw it away. Another one was only forty bucks. I didn’t get the expensive one ‘cause it’ll probably just get broken again."

Chris pulled out into traffic as Lance smiled and said, "Okay, so you needed another one, but why now? Couldn’t it have waited until we go shopping with Mike and Charlie?"

JC grinned at him and tossed the empty box over his shoulder into the back. "But I wanted to be able to listen to music at the beach today! I even bought lots of batteries for it."

Justin laughed and turned in his seat to look at JC. "Josh, babe, can’t you live without tunes even one day?"

JC took a package of batteries out of the bag he’d put in the floor between his feet. "Well, yeah, but I don’t really _want_ to, so why try?" he asked, grinning at Justin before he ripped the batteries open and began putting them in the CD player. "I’ll go down the beach a ways so I don’t bug you guys with it if you want."

"We don’t mind your music Josh, there’s no reason for you to do that." Lance patted JC’s knee and then looked past him at Joey and asked, "Why were you grinning when you two came out?"

Joey grinned again. "Because the cashier recognized Josh, and he threw her completely without even trying hard."

Lance chuckled as Chris and Justin exchanged a grin. "How?" Chris asked.

Joey chuckled and nudged JC, who looked up as he sat the CD player in his lap and then flipped his wrist and spoke in an easily recognizable California accent, flaming for all he was worth, "Mitchell sweetie, did you _hear_ that?! She thinks I look like that _Chasez_ person... Mmm-mm-mm, that boy is so fine, I wish I could get me a piece of _that_!"

Justin and Lance both cracked up laughing as Chris grinned and said, "Dude! You didn’t!"

JC nodded as he looked at his hands, grinning so wide that his eyes crinkled up almost shut as he picked up the CD player to finish putting the batteries in.

"He did!" Joey said, still grinning. "The guy in line behind us looked like he wanted to puke, then started mumbling about ‘damn screwy tourists’."

Justin grinned at JC. "Josh, babe, I never would have thought you’d do something like that."

JC shrugged, still grinning. "It was easy, I do it all the time when I’m alone and people think they recognize me... None of our fans would ever think I’d do something like that, so it always throws them off, especially the accent." He paused, then looked up and went on in a totally different accent, "And sometimes I’m, like, near some real water man, and like, totally with the scene, and I do a bitchin’ surfer dude who could like, _never_ sing and shit..." He rolled his eyes and went on, "That’s work my man, life’s too short! There’s, like, too many wahinis and waves I gotta ride."

JC beamed as the other four laughed and then Lance said, "I thought you told me you can’t act?"

JC shrugged, blushing as he looked down to close the back of the CD player, then looked back up at Lance. "I forget my lines and I can’t read the ‘prompter when I get nervous ‘cause the words all run together. That’s why they never had me play much besides Wipeout at Disney. There was no real script for him most of the time, I just played along with everyone else. I can’t really _act_ , not like you guys do... I can just do a flamer and a surfer and … a few other things."

Chris snorted and slowed down as they passed a sign saying the park’s entrance was the next left. "You just were acting, Josh, and pretty damn good too! You could fool half the people who work for us like that, and if you dressed different too I bet you could fool them all."

Justin and Lance both nodded as Joey said, "Yeah, you’re good."

JC turned red again and looked at his lap, grinning. "Thanks guys." He looked up after a second and twisted suddenly around to look in the back for the other bag as he said, "Oh! Baby, I got you a hat, you’re gonna love it." He pulled a bag over the seat and into his lap, then reached in and pulled out a Tarheels basketball hat to hand it to Justin.

Justin grinned and took the hat. "Hey, I don’t have this one!"

Chris pulled into a parking place in the deserted lot and turned the car off, then watched with the others as Justin popped off the tag and put the cap on, grinning.

JC grinned happily, looking at Justin and the hat. "I knew that, that’s why I grabbed it." He dug in the bag again and pulled out his wallet, then reached behind him for Justin’s backpack and stuffed it in the outside pocket again and zipped it back up.

"What else did you get?" Justin asked, turning to look at the three in the back as Chris opened his door, letting in a breeze.

JC shrugged and looked in the bag in his lap. "A couple CDs, another hat, more batteries, a magazine, a few drinks..."

Joey grinned and added, "And a bag of Cheetos, a half a dozen candy bars, some gum, and a t-shirt."

Lance laughed and got out as Chris asked incredulously, "How did you have time to get all that?! You two weren’t in there long enough."

Joey chuckled and opened his door. "Most of it was between the door and the electronics section, or at the checkout. The only things we had to go looking for were the chips and the batteries."

JC grabbed Justin’s backpack again and looked at him. "Do you want to take your blanket?"

Justin thought a second, then shook his head. "Nah, we’ve got the towels to sit on if we don’t wanna sit in the sand." Chris got out then, followed by Joey, leaving just the two of them in the truck with all the doors open.

JC grinned and said, "Good, that’ll leave more room for the junk I bought." He pulled their clothes and then Justin’s blanket out of the bag, then stuffed the clothes back in and added one of his folders of CDs and the bottles of Mountain Dew and Dr. Pepper. JC zipped up Justin’s backpack then and handed it to him with a grin before he pulled the t-shirt he was wearing off and dug into the bag he hadn’t emptied yet.

"JC, what are you doing?" Lance asked, smiling.

JC looked up quickly as he pulled a t-shirt and a baseball cap out of the last bag. "Puttin’ on my new t-shirt!" he said with a big grin, then started removing tags from the white t-shirt in his lap that looked to have a brightly colored designs on the front and back.

Joey chuckled. "That shirt’s great. For once JC wanted to buy something I would wear!"

"Hey!" JC said, grinning as he bit through the plastic string holding the last tag. "I can pick out good clothes, I just like to be unique."

"Oh you’re that all right, no doubt!" Chris said with a laugh and closed his door, handing Lance the keys as Justin got out of the truck on the other side.

JC pulled the t-shirt on then and Lance saw it and started laughing, drawing Dre and Scott’s attention from where they stood nearby. When he heard Lance laugh, Justin turned to look back in the truck while Chris craned his neck to see in on the other side, and they both cracked up. JC’s shirt had a picture of a muscle-bound cartoon guy shooting the curl on a surfboard with sixties-style flowers, happy faces and peace symbols all over it, and the slogan ‘Ride it!’ below the picture. Not only was the graphic funny, but JC was so skinny that the oversized shirt hung lower on him than it was strictly designed to, putting the text just below the level of his belt and giving it a whole new connotation.

Joey grinned and said, "Show’em the back too." JC grinned back at him and then slid over on the seat to get out the driver’s side as Joey closed the other door and started around the truck after Justin. JC turned around as soon as he was out of the truck to show them all his back, which had a picture of the same surfboard stuck in the sand next to an umbrella that had the musclebound guy’s ugly feet sticking out from behind it with a pair of very dainty feet in such a way it was obvious they were probably not talking.

Justin and Chris whooped with laughter when they saw the back while Dre, Scott, and Lance chuckled and Joey just grinned at them.

"I love it!" Justin said when he quit laughing, ducking into the strap on his backpack with a huge grin. "You have _got_ to let me borrow it sometime."

JC beamed. "No problem, I got one too big for me so we could all wear it." JC leaned into the truck then to get the hat he’d bought, a plain blue denim baseball cap, and the one Chris had loaned him. He handed Chris his hat and finger-combed his hair back out of his face to put his own on, then leaned back in to get the CD player before he turned to everyone else with a grin. "Let’s go!"

The others grinned back at him and then they all started towards the sign nearby with a large map of the park. An older park ranger came out of the nearby building as they reached the sign and called, "Hello! I was beginning to think you had decided not to come." He smiled at them and walked over as he went on, "I’m Harry, I’m the one who spoke to Lonnie earlier... Is there anything I can do for you boys before you get started on your hike?"

Lance smiled. "Not that I know of, sir. We just want to go for a walk along the beach and maybe swing back on one of your trails through the woods."

Harry grinned at him and pointed towards a sign about fifty feet away. "That’s the trail you’ll want, then. It runs along the beach for half a mile past a pier the kids use for diving, with several trails branching off from it that go inland and wind through the nature trails back to here. Which one you need to take would depend on how far you want to walk. The shortest route is half a mile, and the longest circles the whole place and is over three miles. Each one is posted with a map and clearly marked, as are interconnecting paths between the main ones that either shorten or lengthen your walk depending which way you go."

Justin grinned and him. "Hey, cool... So we could start out on the mile walk and decide to go farther and not have to go back to the beginning to get on another trail?"

Harry nodded at him. "Exactly! Though I must admit, most start out on the mile trail and decide not to go so far," he said with a chuckle. "The few young men your age who come out here might make it half an hour into their walk before they get bored looking at trees and either go home or drag their girl off into the bushes."

Joey and Lance chuckled as JC spoke up, "Is it okay if we play some music? We won’t if it’s against the rules or anything..."

Harry smiled. "Go ahead, you won’t be bothering anyone. You’re the only people I’ve seen all day besides my assistant and the two people from the wildlife department who turned loose a raccoon this morning. You boys just enjoy yourselves, I’m sure it’s a rare thing for you to get away from it all."

Lance nodded emphatically. "You can say that again! We haven’t spent a whole day outside in six months or so, and I can’t remember the last time I went somewhere without security."

Harry shook his head and gave them a wry grin. "I don’t know how you do it. I’d go quite noisily insane with people watching me all the time. You boys have a good afternoon, I’ll leave you alone to enjoy it." He turned to walk away but immediately turned back and said, "Almost forgot, here’s my number." He pulled a card out of his shirt pocket to hand it to Lance. "We have a golf cart that we use quite bit in the summertime, ferrying people back in who bit off more trail than they could walk. Just give me a holler if you want a ride back in later and I’ll come get you, okay? I’ll be here until closing time, which will be seven o’clock, about an hour after dark." He smiled at them and then left.

Lance looked at Dre and Scott as they all started towards the trail Harry had pointed out. "Do you two have any requests for how we do this, or are you just gonna tag along and pretend you’re having fun?" he asked them with a grin.

Dre and Scott exchanged a look and then Scott passed Lance and headed off down the trail. Dre grinned back at Lance and said, "We’ll just make like we’re invisible for the most part, as long as you guys don’t disappear for too long at a time. The boss’ll kill me if he calls for something and I can’t hand the phone to you."

Justin looked happily surprised as he exclaimed, "We’re allowed to disappear?! Cool!" JC grinned at him and then had to laugh as Justin went on, "I was sure we’d get in trouble for makin’ like a tree."

Chris laughed then as he bounced along down the trail next to Joey and said, "Infant, you’re not old enough to know that one!"

Dre chuckled and let the guys walk on ahead of him a bit, watching as they talked and goofed off. Dre thought they really needed a week off, and after just one day they already seemed happier and more relaxed, especially JC... They never talked to anyone else about it, but the security guys had been worried about JC for a while, especially the ones who had been with them since the beginning. Dre remembered how JC had acted in the early days, so seeing him back to normal was a welcome change. JC was practically glowing with happiness and more animated than Dre had seen him offstage in a year, if not more.

Justin grinned back at Chris and said, "It’s all your fault for making me watch those ‘ _Totally 80_ _’_ _s_ ’ videos on the bus. You corrupted my impressionable young mind, you dirty old man you."

"I did not!" Chris exclaimed indignantly, making Lance and Joey both laugh.

JC grinned at Chris. "No, really, he’s got a point man, you sort of _did_ corrupt him... He knows more about the eighties than I do, and I was there."

"Hey!" Justin said, swatting at JC. "I was there too, you’re not _that_ much older than me!"

JC just grinned at him and dodged as Chris spluttered and Lance said, "Hey, at least he’s impartial, Chris corrupted all of us." Lance gave Chris a wicked grin and took off down the trail at a run, followed by a very irate Chris.

Dre just chuckled and shook his head, sure that Lance wouldn’t lead Chris too far away as JC and Justin exchanged grins and then looked at Joey, who was just ambling along beside them and grinning.

"Hey Joe," JC said after a moment, "aren’t you gonna go help him?"

Joey snorted. "Nah, Chris doesn’t need help, Lance won’t run him too hard."

JC laughed. "I _meant_ you should go help Lance. Chris is gonna tackle him when he catches him."

"Oh!" Joey said, grinning. "No, don’t worry, Lance is a big boy, he doesn’t need my help. Chris thinks he can handle him, but he doesn’t know Scoop usually _lets_ him win. Lance knows how our Critter likes to think he’s the boss, and he likes to keep him happy when he can."

Justin laughed while JC just shook his head and grinned.

They kept walking along the path that wound between some dunes, Dre slowly falling farther behind until he only caught glimpses of the guys. It was about five minutes later when Joey, JC, and Justin rounded a turn and stopped, grinning at what they saw. Lance was on his back by the path with Chris straddling his thighs and kissing him, both of them covered in sand from rolling around.

"Having fun, guys?" Joey asked, amused.

Lance pulled away from Chris a bit as he pushed him up to end their kiss, grinning at them when Chris turned to make a face at Joey and said, "I was just about to! Justin’s right, your timing stinks."

Joey chuckled and offered Chris a hand up. "C’mon, you can play with him later. I’ll even help."

Chris grinned at that and let Joey pull him to his feet before he turned to help Lance only to find him already up, shaking like a big dog and sending sand flying as Dre rounded the corner behind Joey, Justin and JC to pause and watch with a grin.

"Hey!" Chris said, flinging up a hand to protect his eyes until sand quit hitting him. "How do you _y_ that?!" he asked Lance, incredulous.

Lance just grinned at him and went to pick up his bag from where it had landed about ten feet away, then walked back over to stand by Joe and Chris as he finally answered, "Just good I guess."

Joey chuckled and slipped an arm around Lance’s waist, turning him to urge him down the path as he said, "Oh you are that, baby boy, damn good."

Chris laughed and started walking on Joey’s other side as JC and Justin grinned at each other and fell in behind the trio, walking shoulder to shoulder.

Dre smiled and followed after a moment, thinking Joey, Chris, and Lance were the ones acting like newlyweds, and he’d expected it to be JC and Justin who were all cuddly and kissy and just generally schmoopy. Dre knew Lance and Joey had been together a while, and that they hadn’t acted this obviously in love when they were in Toronto. In Dre’s opinion they’d mostly just acted horny then, so he figured it had something to do with Chris. Dre never would have pictured Chris as the cuddly type, but as he rounded the last corner to see the five of them on the beach he had to grin as he saw yet more proof Chris was just that.

Chris was holding Joey’s hand and leaning against his shoulder while he, Joey, and Lance were watching JC and Justin sit in the sand pulling off their hats, t-shirts, shoes and socks, dropping them in a pile by Justin’s discarded backpack and the CD player. JC and Justin rose with easy grace after only a moment to run side-by-side to the water and wade out into the surf about waist deep before they started splashing each other as Joey, Lance and Chris all laughed.

It was soon obvious JC was much better at splashing – he’d mastered how to cup his hand just right to move the most water – and Justin changed tactics to dive after him, sending them both tumbling under the waves. They came up after a minute, JC squirming free with a laugh and disappearing under the water again to reappear ten feet away a moment later, swimming away as he dared Justin to catch him. Justin laughed and dove under the waves to give chase, coming up much further away than JC had and swimming strongly after him.

Dre looked around then and saw Scott sitting on a low pier about two hundred yards away where he would have a good view of the whole beach, then made a decision. Dre grinned and said, "Lance? You guys gonna stick around here for a while or head further down the beach?"

Lance looked at Joey and Chris just as Chris said, "Why don’t we take our stuff on down to that pier, then leave it there and go for a walk? They won’t mind, now that C’s in the water you know he’d rather play than do anything else."

Joey smiled and nodded and Lance looked over his shoulder at Dre. "That okay with you?"

"Sure," Dre said with a grin, walking to the pile of stuff in front of them. "Sounds fine. Scotty and I will keep an eye on these two while y’all are gone." Dre bent to open Justin’s backpack and put their hats, shirts and socks in it, then tied their shoe laces together and slung the backpack and shoes over his shoulder, picking up the CD player in his free hand.

"You don’t have to do that, I can carry their stuff," Lance said then, making as if to move towards Dre.

Dre shook his head and smiled. "Nah, I got it."

Joey squeeezed Lance and said softly, "You’re carrying enough, Scoop.” He looked at Dre and went on, "But he’s right man, that’s not your job.. Me’n Chris’ll carry their stuff."

Dre grinned and just shook his head and started towards the pier as he repeated, "I’ve got it."

Joey made a face at Dre’s back as the three of them started after him. "He doesn’t listen so good."

Chris chuckled. "We don’t pay him to listen to us, Joe. We pay him to keep us alive."

Lance grinned and said, "And to be discreet. I’m appreciating that part more and more."

Joey chuckled at that, and Chris grinned, both thinking they liked that part too. Within a few minutes they had put Lance’s stuff down on the pier next to Justin’s bag and they were headed inland after telling Dre they’d be back in half an hour or so.

Dre and Scott sat on the pier and talked as they watched JC and Justin play in the water for a bit, swimming and body-surfing and just generally goofing around while both bodyguards kept and eye out for boats that got too close or other people. So far it looked like they had picked the perfect day and place to relax. The weather was fine with no people around and very few boats, and the few that went by showed no interest in the couple who finally relaxed, floating in the water and holding hands as they talked quietly.

 


	27. Chapter 27

  
~~~~27~~~~

 

When the trio finally came back nearly an hour later, Lance didn’t see JC and Justin anywhere, but Dre and Scott were still on the pier and he heard music so he figured they couldn’t be far away.

"Sorry... Lost track of time," Lance said when they reached the two bodyguards, giving them a sheepish grin.

Dre chuckled. "No problem, boss. I knew you’d drag those two back here eventually."

Joey grinned at Dre as he put his arms around Lance from behind and said, "See Scoop, I told you they’d understand. Stop worrying so much and relax."

Lance smiled over his shoulder at Joe and leaned back against him as he said, "I can’t help it, I’ve always worried about you guys."

Chris moved to stand next to them as he said, "Us and everyone else too, but this week you’re not allowed to worry. Joe and I are gonna get you to enjoy yourself even if we have to get sneaky and make you." Chris grinned at him while Dre and Scott chuckled.

Lance gave Chris a sudden smug grin and said, "Well, you’ve made a good start then. I really enjoyed our walk."

Joey laughed and then looked around before he looked back at Dre and asked, "Where’re Josh and Jup?"

Dre grinned and gestured over his shoulder to the other side of the pier. "They swam for a while and then decided to play some music, but they’ve been really quiet for a little bit. I think they probably fell asleep."

Lance grinned back at him and pulled away from Joey to go around the pier to look, Joey and Chris following right behind him. They rounded the corner of the pier after a moment and Lance walked closer to the still pair before he stopped to look down at them, smiling. JC was laying on his side on one of the towels they’d brought with his head resting on one folded arm and Justin curled up against him, his nose against JC’s chest and one arm around his waist. The little CD player was sitting in the sand playing a song that Lance didn’t recognize while JC stroked Justin’s back, singing so softly they could barely hear him over the surf even standing right there by him.

" _I can_ _’_ _t swear that you never have to cry another tear, but whenever you want someone to hold you, I_ _’_ _m right here. So just come to me for anything at all. Call my name, it_ _’_ _s yours to call. Feel my faith in you when you can_ _’_ _t find your own, and always remember you_ _’_ _re never alone... That_ _’_ _s all I_ _’_ _ll ever ask, that_ _’_ _s all I_ _’_ _ll ever ask, that_ _’_ _s all I_ _’_ _ll ever ask, of you._ " There was a short acoustic guitar solo and JC hummed along softly until the song went on, " _I can_ _’_ _t swear that you_ _’_ _ll never have to cry another tear... But whenever you want someone to hold you, remember, I_ _’_ _m always right here. That_ _’_ _s all I_ _’_ _ll ever ask, that_ _’_ _s all I_ _’_ _ll ever ask, that_ _’_ _s all I_ _’_ _ll ever ask, of you_." The song ended a moment after that, and then there was silence a moment before the next one began, one that Chris, Joey and Lance recognized immediately as being a Billy Joel song.

"You guys ready to go?" JC asked them quietly then, his hand still on Justin’s back as he turned his head to look over his shoulder at them.

"Not really," Lance answered softly, smiling as he moved over so JC could see him easier. "We just got back and Dre said you’d been quiet for a while so we wondered what you were doing."

JC smiled back at him. "Nothing," he said softly, "just letting him sleep."

"M’not asleep." JC looked down in surprise and Justin opened his eyes, smiling drowsily up at him as he went on, "just layin’ in the sun bein’ lazy."

JC chuckled softly. "Baby, you couldn’t be lazy if you tried." Justin hated to go very long without doing something, even on days off, and seldom spent time actually relaxing unless he was asleep.

Lance and Chris exchanged grins then, just before Joey asked, "Who does that song? The voice is kinda familiar..."

JC looked over his shoulder at him. "Which one? The one that’s playing now, or the one before?"

Justin pulled away from JC just enough to prop himself up on one arm, cocking his head as he listened to the song playing.

" _Goodnight, my angel, time to close your eyes, and save these questions for another day. I think I know what you_ _’_ _ve been asking me, I think you know what I_ _’_ _ve been trying to say; I promised I would never leave you, and you should always know, wherever you may go, no matter where you are, I never will be far away."_

Joey grinned. "I’ve heard this one – it’s by Billy Joel – but I don’t think I’ve ever heard the other one before."

"Neither have I," Justin said with a smile, "and I thought I’d heard all your music."

JC smiled and rolled over onto his back so he was propped up on both elbows and could see all of his friends. "The one playing now is ‘ _Goodnight My Angel_ ’ by Billy Joel, but on one of his albums it’s called Lullabye so you might know it by that... The other one was ‘ _All I_ _’_ _ll Ever Ask_ _’_ by Joshua Kadison, a really talented guy out of California that hardly anyone has ever heard of because he only published a few thousand copies of two of his three albums. I know him though, so..." JC grinned.

Chris looked surprised and said, "Isn’t he the guy who did that one song—Oh what is it, they played it over and over and _over_ on Much Music... Oh yeah!" he paused a moment and then sang, "‘ _Jesse, paint your pictures,_ _‘_ _bout how it_ _’_ _s gonna to be... By now I should know better, your dreams are never free._ ’ What’s the name of it? Painted something?"

JC chuckled. "Yeah, he did that one too, and you’re mostly right. The name of that song is ‘ _Jesse_ ’, and it was on the album _Painted Desert Serenade_."

Chris grinned at Joey and Lance. "I’m so good."

Lance just chuckled while Joey smirked and said, "We knew that."

Chris winked at Joey, making Justin laugh as he sat up next to JC. "You three were gone forever, did you get lost?" he asked, looking up at the other three with a wicked grin. "Or maybe lose something?"

JC swatted him lightly on the knee, grinning. "You behave!"

Justin stuck his tongue out at JC and then looked at the other three, waiting for an answer with a grin.

Lance grinned at Justin. "We didn’t get lost, we just got ... distracted."

Chris snorted and said, "No, you got _laid_." Lance swatted at him, missing when Chris dodged with easy agility, and Joey chuckled while JC and Justin exchanged a grin. "And rolled around in the grass a while," Chris went on, dancing out of Lance’s reach with a grin. "And then had your wicked way with my boyfriend."

Lance gave Chris a dirty look, then grinned and said, "He’s my boyfriend too, I can play with him if I want," and stuck his tongue out at Chris while he made a ‘nyahh’ noise.

Joey snorted softly and watched them both with a tolerant grin, wondering how Chris would reply to that.

"Y’know," JC said then grinning up at them, "if you were rolling around on the ground I hope you guys checked for poison ivy. It’s like, _majorly_ common in the Carolinas."

Lance’s eyes widened slightly as he looked down at JC. "I wouldn’t know it if I saw it, but I didn’t even think to look..." He looked back up at Joey and Chris, then narrowed his eyes at Chris and said, "If I wind up with poison ivy all over me, you’re going to regret it."

Chris’ eyes went wide and indignant. "Me?! What about Joe, he was there too!"

Lance snorted and said, "Yeah, but _Joey_ didn’t steal my pants, and _he_ let me stay on top instead of wrestling with me."

Justin tried hard not to laugh at the look on Chris’ face, but JC started giggling and Justin gave in and joined him after only a moment.

"But—!" Chris said, and then, "Yeah, go ahead you two, laugh! That ground was hard and he’s _heavy_ , there’s no way I was stayin’ on the bottom."

Lance snorted and gave Chris a dirty look. "And you think you’re a little bitty thing, right? Not." Chris opened his mouth to say something but Lance went on, cutting him off. "We wear the same size jeans, so don’t even say it."

Joey spoke up then, still grinning. "I can tell you two who’s heavier if you’d like."

Justin and JC looked at him expectantly, both of them grinning and trying not to laugh as Lance cocked an expressive eyebrow at Joey and folded his arms on his chest, waiting.

"Well?" Chris said after a moment, "So tell us already!"

Joey grinned and then grabbed him and swung Chris up over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes while he struggled and yelled, "Dammit Joey, put me down! We all know you’re strong, you don’t gotta prove it!"

Dre and Scott looked over at them, grinning, then went back to their conversation.

Lance watched them, a little grin playing at the corners of his mouth as he finally said, "What was picking him up supposed to tell us, Joe?" Joey sat Chris down abruptly and headed for Lance with a grin, but Lance started backing away, trying not to laugh. "Oh no, uh-uh! If I let him win will you be good?"

Joey chuckled and stopped. "I guess." He grinned wickedly and then said, "But you are heavier so you’re not really letting him win."

Lance looked surprised as Chris crowed, "Ha! See! I knew it!"

Joey looked over at Chris and said, "Lance is heavier but you _feel_ heavier most of the time. Lance holds most of his own weight if you let him; you just sprawl all over people and take up residence. You’re a lot heavier than you look."

Chris looked surprised and then like he was going to argue but before he had a chance to Justin chuckled and said, "Josh’s heavier than he looks too."

JC sat up the rest of the way and shoved him, grinning. "Oh and you’re not?"

Justin grinned at him as he replied, "I dunno. I’ve never picked me up."

Chris let himself be distracted and laughed at that while Joey and JC chuckled and Lance just shook his head and grinned.

JC noticed the angle of the sun then and looked up at Lance as he asked, "What time is it?"

Lance checked his watch. "Fifteen ‘til six. If we’re gonna take a walk we’d better get started, it’ll be dark soon."

JC stood easily and walked over to turn the CD player off and go set it on the pier as Justin stood and began trying to dust the coarse beach sand off his jean shorts rather unsuccessfully. "A walk would be nice, but it’s up to you guys... I’ll be right back." He grinned at them and then turned and trotted to the water to wade out waist deep and then disappear beneath the waves.

JC looked out towards the water in time to see Justin disappear beneath the waves, then chuckled and looked at the other three as he said, "He’s got a good idea, this sand is annoying... Y’all decide if we’re taking a walk or not, okay? We’ll be back in a minute." He gave them a quick grin and then ran down the beach and out into the water, diving cleanly in when he was just past knee deep and swimming after Justin with a deceptive ease that made you forget how quickly he was moving.

Joey chuckled. "Those two are like sea otters or something... I couldn’t move through the water like that to save my life, and they both do it as natural as breathing."

Lance laughed and nodded, moving over closer to Chris and Joey again to watch the other two as JC challenged Justin to race to the end of the pier and back. Justin grinned and told JC he was on, and before he’d even turned towards the pier JC was off, making Justin yell, "Cheat!" before he took off after him.

Lance chuckled and watched the skilled way JC moved through the water, ducking under most waves and keeping his feet together while he undulated his whole body instead of kicking his feet like Justin did. "JC swims more like a dolphin, but I can see Justin as an otter." Chris laughed and nodded as Lance went on, "JC has the whole dolphin thing. Graceful, talented, and smart with a wicked sense of humor."

Joey laughed as Chris nodded, grinning as he added, "And Justin’s a typical sea otter, or maybe a seal. Funny, stronger than he looks and loyal as they come but not too bright."

Joey shook his head, still chuckling, and Lance pushed lightly at Chris’ shoulder. "You’re so mean! Justin’s smart, he can’t help it if he’s a little dense."

Chris snorted and said, "Babe, that’s like saying Josh is a little gay."

Joey laughed and nodded as Lance chuckled, amused despite himself.

JC and Justin had reached the end of the pier by then and were on the way back, Justin slowly gaining on JC until they were almost even, but Justin wasn’t as good at swimming in shallow water and had to stand and wade sooner than JC did, so he fell behind again and JC was the first back up the beach to where the others waited.

JC stood waiting for him with a smug grin and when Justin had almost reached him he asked, "So what do I win, baby?"

Justin laughed and took a final step and then grabbed JC under his arms, picking him up easily and holding him up above his head at arm’s length while JC grinned down at him. "How about me?" Justin asked after a moment. "Am I a good enough prize?"

JC lifted his legs to wrap them around Justin, bracing his hands on Justin’s shoulders as the younger man started to set him back down. "Oh yeah, baby," JC said with a grin, "You’ll do just fine..."

Justin chuckled and JC tightened his legs around Justin’s waist, wrapping his arms around Justin’s neck too to support his weight so that Justin could slide his arms around him without dropping him. "Good," Justin said with a grin, ducking his head forward to nip lightly at JC’s collarbone before he looked back up at him and went on, "that way I win too."

Lance laughed as Chris said, "You two are too much! Justin, I thought you just said JC was heavy, but you’re tossing him around like a feather!"

Justin looked at him over JC’s shoulder and grinned. "No, I said he’s heavier than he looks, not that he’s heavy. Josh is buff and beautiful and sexy as hell but he’s still just a little slip of a thing."

Lance and Joey both laughed; that was a pretty accurate description of JC, even if he was almost six feet tall.

"Thank you, baby," JC said, then ducked his head with a grin to kiss Justin, pulling back after only a moment as he loosened his legs from around Justin’s waist and tried to put his feet down. He expected to slide down far enough he could stand, but instead Justin just grinned and tightened his arms around him and let his feet dangle so that his toes could barely touch the sand. "C’mon baby, put me down," JC said with a chuckle, squirming slightly. "We’re too public here, anybody could go by."

Justin made a face and let JC slide down the last few inches, capturing his lips in a quick but thorough kiss before he let him go completely. "Okay, but I get to play with you after dark."

JC turned and walked over towards where their bags were on the pier, looking over his shoulder at Justin with a wicked grin. "Who said anything about dark, baby? There’s a nice stretch of woods right over those dunes, and I know what poison ivy _and_ poison oak look like."

Lance snorted as Justin started after JC with a huge grin but Joey and Chris exchanged a grin and then looked at Lance. "Are we gonna take a walk or just go to the trucks to wait for them?" Chris asked him.

Lance cocked his head to one side and looked over at where JC was drying his hair with the clean towel he’d pulled out of their bag, then bent to retrieve the one they had left in the sand. "I say we go for a walk," he said with a grin as he straightened and shook the towel. "If we take the next trail down the beach it’ll be about three-quarters of a mile to the trucks, which should give those two some time to play."

Joey nodded. "Sounds good to me, babe, only I get to carry your bag," he said with a grin, looking at Lance and ignoring the fact his eyebrows had popped up at being called ‘babe’. Lance had a firm feeling on the subject of cute little pet names: if he didn’t get to use any then they didn’t either, except Scoop.

Chris grinned and said, "And I’ll carry the radio for Josh. I doubt they’ll need it."

JC looked over at them with a quick grin as he put everything back in their bag after he dug out the drinks he’d brought. "Thanks man, I appreciate it."

Justin nodded and gave them a bright smile as JC walked over to them. "Yeah, thanks."

JC offered Joey one of the two Dr. Peppers then and when he took it he offered Lance the other one, but Lance shook his head. "I’m not thirsty, C... You want it Chris?" he asked, looking at Chris who shrugged and then grinned.

"Sure, why not... It’ll be a long dry walk back to the truck."

JC handed him the drink with a grin and then walked back over to pick up the Mountain Dew he’d sat on the pier and opened it, taking a long swallow before he offered it to Justin. "Here baby, drink some," he said, making it more of a statement than a question.

Justin made a face and took it, taking a swallow before he said, "I’m not really thirsty."

Lance chuckled at that and JC gave him a grin before he looked back at Justin and said, "You were swimming for over an hour this afternoon in salt water, so you need it whether you know it or not... Drink."

Justin made a face at him again. "Yes mommy," he replied, then took a long drink before he thrust the bottle back at JC with a sudden smug grin. "Your turn, you swam even more than I did." JC grinned and took the bottle, then tipped his head back to chug down about half of what was left.

Justin snorted and then put the towel back in his bag. It wasn’t nearly so fun to tell JC he had to do something if he wasn’t going to argue.

Joey laughed at the look on Justin’s face as he walked over to the pier to get Lance’s bag and the little stereo. "If we’re going, we better get moving, it’ll be dark soon."

Lance nodded quickly. "You’re right, Joe." Joey walked back over and handed Chris the radio as Lance looked across the pier and called, "Dre? Do you two want to come with us or head back to the trucks and wait for us? JC and Justin don’t want any company, but you’re welcome to come with us."

Dre rose and stretched. "I’ll come with you guys, I could use the exercise. Scotty?" Dre looked at the other bodyguard, waiting for an answer.

Scott looked thoughtful a moment as he too stood, then said, "I’ll go ahead to the trucks. That way if you guys take a while I’ll be there to keep an eye out for JC and Justin when they get that far. And I’ll have a shorter walk." He grinned at them.

Dre nodded. "Sounds good to me. That okay with you guys?" He looked across the pier at the others and everyone nodded.

A moment later Joey, Lance, and Chris started towards the path with Dre moving quickly to join them while Justin swung his backpack up onto his shoulder and gave Scott a grin. "We’ll be a while," Justin told him with a grin. "I bet they’ll be back before we are." JC chuckled and started up the beach towards the first trail without waiting for Justin.

Scott grinned at Justin and said, "No hurry. You two have fun, just don’t stay out too long, okay? The park closes an hour after dark."

Justin nodded and gave him a quick grin. "We’ll be back before then. See ya." He started up the beach at a trot after JC, and after a moment Scott headed back along the beach towards the trucks, looking out at the ocean and thinking the guys had picked a nice place for their week off.

 


	28. Chapter 28

 

~~~~28~~~~

 

It was a little after six thirty when Joey, Lance, Chris, and Dre emerged from the woods within sight of the trucks to find Scotty in the passenger seat of the bodyguards’ Expedition drinking a cup of coffee and talking to Harry, who was standing by the truck.

When Harry saw Scott glance up he turned to look too and then he grinned. "Hello! Did you boys enjoy your walk?"

The four of them nodded as Joey said, "Oh yeah. This is a beautiful park, you guys must work your butts off to keep it this nice."

Harry smiled at them. "I’m glad you like it, it does take a bit of work, but not so much as you might think. Where are your friends?" He grinned and then asked, "Did they decide they needed a ride?"

Lance laughed. "Oh no, they decided to take a different path on the way back. They’ll be here before too long, I’m sure, but they wanted one last look at the ocean before we leave. They’re both long-time Floridians – they’ve lived there since they were kids – and when we go out on tour I think they miss the beach more than they do their homes or even their family."

Harry chuckled. "I understand that, I love the water myself. It’s one of the reasons I took the position here instead of retiring, I didn’t—" He broke off suddenly as the beeper at his belt started flashing, then he checked the message on it and looked up. "I’m sorry, I’ve got to go. A deer was hit on the other side of the park and I’m needed to help with it. You boys enjoy your evening, and don’t hesitate to give me a call if you’d like to come again." He smiled at them and then left without waiting for a reply, heading across the parking lot towards a small pickup while the guys exchanged bemused glances.

"Well," Lance said as the pickup pulled away, "we don’t have to worry about JC and Justin walking out of the woods holding hands now. I’m driving next."

Lance grinned at Joey and Chris and started to the drivers side of their Expedition, and after a moment they followed, each saying the other should sit in the front until Lance finally said, "Chris! Quit being nice and sit up front like we all know you want to. Joey will be just as happy in the back, and you won’t be so tempted to pick on JC and Justin." Chris stuck his tongue out at Lance but did as he was told while Dre chuckled and walked around the other Expedition to go sit in the drivers seat.

Joey climbed in the back seat of their truck and began picking up the junk scattered everywhere, putting the empty bags and tags from the things JC had bought into the empty box the CD player had come in, and putting the remaining bag of junk food right behind the seat. About five minutes after he started, Joey bent to pick up one last tag out of the floor and chuckled, making Lance and Chris both turn to look at him as he picked up the tag and a half-empty tube of lube.

"I wonder if Justin dropped this today or if it’s from last night?" Joey asked with a grin. "If this is what he planned to use today, I’d bet I know a very annoyed blond. Well, okay, sort of a blond."

Lance laughed as Chris grinned back at Joe and said, "JC seems to know what he’s doing, I’d be willing to bet he knows how to make do without it."

Lance chuckled and said, "Yeah, but would he? That’s Justin you’re talking about. That may not be something Josh wants him to learn."

Joey laughed. "Lance! You think JC would keep something from his baby?"

Lance smirked. "Oh yeah, especially if it has to do with sex. Justin’s already giving him fits, he may not want him to figure out certain things aren’t always necessary."

Chris chuckled and looked at Joey. "He’s got a point, our dear sweet Joshua isn’t nearly as spacey as he has been..."

"Which is great as far as I’m concerned," Joey said to Chris with a big grin. "We’re getting the old C back, the one who used to give you a run for your money and who kept Juppy guessing all the time because he was always a step or three ahead of him."

Lance nodded, smiling. "The difference just a few days has made in him is amazing. I’ve been wondering how it took me so long to notice something was wrong." Lance’s smile turned a little wry as he said that.

Chris reached over to pat Lance’s knee as he said, "It’s not your fault, Scoop. We all missed it. Joey’s known him longest besides Jup, and he missed it too, right?" He looked at Joey, who nodded, and then Chris went on, "He’s quickly getting to be more like the kid I met way back when in Florida though, the guy who played fast and hard all the time and really lived instead of the guy I’ve been touring with for the last two years. I’m glad to see him playing again instead of sleeping all the time and spacing out in his music. The more time he spends with Justin the more he changes, but it’s a good change."

Joey nodded. "Yeah, that’s the biggest difference I think. He’s playing again, and enjoying everything instead of just doing things because he knows he should."

Lance nodded and was about to say something when they heard voices from the direction of the trails and looked up to see who it was. A moment later JC and Justin came into sight trotting up the path that led up from the beach side by side, perfectly in step as they sang some surfing song and grinned as they passed the lyrics back and forth without missing a word. They had changed clothes and were in their t-shirts from that morning and the clean jeans they’d brought, both of them with their hats and shoes on again. They quit singing when they got into the light and slowed down to a walk, but they were still grinning when they reached the truck.

"Hey guys," JC called with a grin, "hope you didn’t wait on us too long. We lost Jup’s bag in the dark and had to look a bit to find it again." Justin grinned and let his packpack slide off his shoulder as he followed JC to the open door at the back seat of the truck.

Lance laughed. "At least you found it again." Justin nodded, grinning, and tossed his bag in the back before he got in next to JC and closed the door.

Chris turned around on his knees in the front seat and grinned wickedly at them as they got in, and as soon as Justin had closed the door he said, "Y’know, all the paths _I_ saw were well-lit. Where were you two that it was so dark?"

JC grinned. "Well, that would be not on a path."

Justin added, "Very not on a path. Like, nowhere near the paths." He looked at JC, who gave him a huge crinkly-eyed grin, and Justin’s grin widened as he looked back at Chris and said, "Paths are so over-rated, believe me."

JC started giggling, and when Chris gave him a funny look he turned his head to hide his face in Justin’s shoulder and giggled harder.

Lance snorted and looked at Justin. "Okay, what did you do to him? I know you two didn’t take any alcohol with you, so Josh can’t be drunk, but I haven’t seen him this giggly unless he was."

Justin gave him an innocent look completely spoiled by the wicked gleam in his eyes as he said, "Are you sure you really want to know?"

JC lifted his face away from Justin’s shoulder to grin at him and say, "Baby, don’t you dare."

Justin looked at him and said, "Aww... But Scoop’s curious! If I can’t tell him then you do it."

JC looked at Justin a moment then grinned at Lance and said, "You don’t want to know Lance, really... Joey and Chris couldn’t pull it off, and then you’d always wonder what you’re missing out on."

Lance’s eyebrows went up and Chris snorted and said, "I can do anything you or the Infant can."

Justin and JC looked at each other when Chris spoke and then burst into laughter again while Joey chuckled. He’d been sure that would be Chris’ response, even though Joey knew Chris couldn’t hope to do some of the things JC and Justin could. Those two were much too limber for their own good.

Chris’ eyes narrowed and he gave them a dirty look until they both shut up again, then he said, "Spill Chasez, or I’ll come tickle it out of you."

JC visibly controlled himself and looked at Justin, then leaned close to whisper something in his ear. Justin grinned wickedly and said, "Yeah, I can do that without getting out, easy."

JC grinned at him and then looked at Chris and said, "This is as close as we’re gonna come to telling you. Just watch him and use that wicked little imagination of yours." JC turned to Joey and asked, "Do you mind a lapful for a minute?"

Joey looked surprised but said, "No, ‘course not C."

JC grinned at him and moved over to sit sideways across Joey’s knees, facing Justin.

Justin grinned at JC and slid over a little so there was more room between him and the door, then looked at Chris and reached down to pick up one of his feet, placing it behind his head easily as Joey made a face and Lance flinched. Chris’ eyes went a little wide, but when Justin moved his other ankle up to join the first and then lifted himself up off the seat with his hands, Chris couldn’t stand it anymore.

"Damn Juppy, what are you, a human _pretzel_?!"

Justin laughed and untangled his feet, dropping them to the floor again as he said, "Nah, just flexible... Nothing like Josh though, he makes me look as old and stiff as you are." Justin gave him a wicked grin as JC moved back to the middle of the back seat between Justin and Joey, and Justin draped an arm around him.

Chris stared at Justin for a minute, then looked at JC and said, "I gotta learn how to do that yoga shit." Lance and Joey laughed, and then Chris looked over at Lance, a wicked little grin slowly blooming on his face as he said, "No, _you_ gotta learn how to do that."

Lance laughed. "Oh no, not me, sweetheart! You want somebody that limber, call Wade."

Chris pouted at him and flopped down the right way in his seat. "You’re no fun."

Joey laughed as Lance’s eyebrows rose and he said, "Oh I’m not, huh? I guess that means you won’t be joining Joey and I tonight..." He looked over the back of his seat at Joey and said, "Whatever will we do?"

Joey grinned and said, "Same thing we do every night, baby boy."

Lance made a face. "Joseph Anthony Fatone, are you itching to sleep on the couch with Chris?"

Joey looked surprised. "What’d I do?!"

Lance snorted and turned to face forward and turn the truck on as he said, "You called me ‘baby boy’ again. I _told_ you that if you expect me not to call you some sweet little nickname you’d better not use one on me, and you’ve still stuck me with one. That’s not at all fair, especially since you let Chris call you whatever he wants and I’m not even supposed to call you sweetheart."

Joey looked sheepish. "But... You _are_ my baby boy. And I have to let Chris call me whatever he wants, he won’t listen to me if I tell him not to." Chris smirked.

Lance sat back and folded his arms across his chest, staring straight ahead as he said, "Joe, I love you, you know that, but you are not gonna call me baby unless I get to call you whatever I want to, too. It’s only fair."

JC and Justin exchanged grins and sat still watching the two, waiting to see what would happen. They’d been wondering why Lance and Joey seemed to be using nothing but each other’s names until Joey started with the ‘baby boy’ stuff, and why Lance seemed to not like it, and now they knew.

Joey made a face. "But with my luck you’ll call me pookie or something and Chris’ll never let me live it down!"

Chris stifled a laugh, sure it wouldn’t be well received right then, and covered his mouth with his hand to keep from saying anything.

Lance whirled around and gave Joey a shocked look. "Is that why you told me you didn’t want me using a nickname, you thought I’d call you _pookie_?! Jesus, Joe! I’m _not_ a girl, I’m not _really_ a blond, and you are most definitely _not_ the ‘pookie’ type!"

Joey looked sheepish. "Um... Sorry?"

Lance snorted and gave him an annoyed look. "You aren’t yet but you will be, you can bet your ass on it."

Joey looked worried as Lance turned back around to face forward. "Josh, Jup, where would you two like to eat supper?"

JC looked at Justin, who shrugged, then looked at Lance. "I dunno," JC said, "What are you in the mood for Scoop?"

Lance looked thoughtful a minute, then grinned. "How about Chinese? We passed a place with a drive-thru on the way here..."

Chris made a face but didn’t say anything, sure that this was intended as payback for pissing Lance off. Lance knew that Joey and Chris both disliked Chinese food, so he was hoping Lance would be satisfied with making them eat it as punishment. Chris did not want to sleep on the couch, especially not if he’d be sharing it with Joey. There would be absolutely nothing going on but kicking themselves and each other for making their ‘baby boy’ unhappy.

JC grinned. "Chinese sounds great to me Scoop, you know I love the stuff as much as you do."

Lance turned to look at Justin. "That okay with you, Justin?" he asked, smiling.

Justin nodded and grinned at him, having picked up on the fact Lance quite pointedly did not care if the other two liked the idea and figuring this was their punishment for being annoying. Eating Chinese food wouldn’t kill them after all, and they might remember to pay more attention to what they said. "Sure, I love eggrolls and won-tons or whatever those little crunchy things with the cheese are called."

Lance chuckled. "Won-tons is right, Jup. Chinese it is. I’ll be right back, I’m gonna go tell Dre." Lance opened his door and hopped out, closing it behind him and making JC wonder why he hadn’t used the cellphone.

Chris turned his head to look at Joey. "We are in deep shit, you know that right? He ignored us completely Joe, he never does that." Chris looked upset, his usually sparkling brown eyes dull and his constant smile gone as he waited for Joey to answer.

Joey nodded, looking just as unhappy. "And we’re supposed to be getting him to relax, Critter, not making him mad." He looked at JC and Justin and said, "I didn’t even realize I was pissing him off..."

JC patted his knee and smiled at him. "Don’t worry, Joe. If he hasn’t cooled off by the time we get to the hotel I’ll do something about it, okay? He’ll listen to me."

Joey gave JC a quick relieved smile as Chris said, "Thanks."

Joey was about to say something else when Justin nudged him with the hand he’d rested across JC’s shoulders and looked over to Lance’s door just as it opened, making the interior lights pop on as Lance got in.

"Okay," Lance said with a quick smile over his shoulder for JC and Justin, "Dre and Scott are gonna follow us over there. We’ll eat back at the hotel, okay?"

JC nodded and grinned at him. "Great... Then we don’t have to be good."

Lance chuckled. "Just be good until we get there, okay guys?"

JC grinned and nodded as Justin said, "No problem boss, we’ll be angelic."

Justin grinned at Lance, who snorted and said, "Curly, you, Josh and angelic cannot all be in the same room at once. If you’re not acting devilish I have no doubts you’ll be sitting there thinking up stuff to try later."

Justin laughed and said, "Hey!"

JC laughed and elbowed Justin, grinning at him. "Sounds to me like he knows you pretty good."

Justin looked at him and then grinned. "Maybe, but you’re just as bad. You do this whole blushing innocent thing and I feel like I’m seducing a saint and then you’ll do something like lick my--"

JC covered Justin’s mouth with his hand, grinning. "They don’t need to know about that, okay baby?" Justin eyes twinkled at him and he licked the palm of JC’s hand, then when JC didn’t move his hand Justin lightly nipped it, making JC jerk his hand off Justin’s grinning mouth before Justin did something more drastic.

Lance chuckled and put the truck in reverse as he said, "You two just proved my point, you know that, right?" The two of them just grinned at him and didn’t reply.

 

 

 

An hour later the guys walked into their suite, Lance and Justin carrying bags of piping hot Chinese food while JC, Joey and Chris trailed along behind them in silence with the two backpacks and the other stuff from the truck. The car had been quiet after they left the park – too quiet – and JC and Justin were both feeling it as much as Joey and Chris were.

Lance wasn’t happy either because he knew he’d over-reacted, but he didn’t want to give in. He hated fighting with Chris and Joey, but he was sure that saying he was sorry now would just encourage them to push it again.

Lance and Justin set the food on the table while the other three moved the mail and boxes they’d left scattered around. The table was cleared and the mail put away without anyone talking at all, and when they moved towards the table to sit down, still silent, JC finally had enough.

"Guys, this just will _not_ work." Everyone looked at JC as he went on. "Lance, they know they fucked up, okay?" Lance’s eyes widened at that and JC turned to Joey and poked him in the chest saying, "You, you tell him what’s right there," and then he looked over at Chris, "and you do the same, and stop this whole silence thing."

Justin moved around behind JC and put his arms around him, nodding at the other guys. "Yeah, we’ve had way too much of people not saying how they really feel.  It’s not allowed anymore, remember?"

JC nodded. "Fix this now, before it goes any further. You love each other too much to do this to each other."

Lance sighed and looked down at the floor for a long moment – he had _definitely_ been too hard on them if he’d upset JC enough to make him say the f-word! – and then looked up to apologize to Joey and Chris to see them both looking at him with almost identical unhappy expressions.

"Lance," Joey said softly as he moved over to him, "I’m sorry." Joey reached out hesitantly to touch Lance’s cheek as he went on, "I love you, and if you want to call me pookie or even sugarpie honeybunch, I don’t mind. I just want to be with you and Chris and for you both to be happy."

Lance leaned into Joey’s hand and lifted his own to cover Joey’s as he said softly, "I’m sorry too, Joe. I overreacted.” He blushed a bit and added, “By a lot. I knew you were just calling me baby because you love me, and I still went without saying anything about it until I let myself get mad."

Lance gave Joey a hesitant smile then and Joey moved his thumb across Lance’s cheek as he smiled back. "Say something sooner next time, okay? I’m just as dense as Justin, I need people to tell me when I do stupid things."

JC smiled at that as Lance nodded and said, "I will, I promise. I even kinda like it when you call me baby, but I made a big deal about it anyway... I’m an idiot." Lance gave him a wry little grin.

"No you aren’t, you’re the brains of this whole outfit and don’t you forget it." Joey smiled and kissed him softly, then leaned his forehead against Lance’s and said quietly, "Critter is upset. He loves you as much as I do, and didn’t mean what he said."

Lance nodded slightly. "I know, I didn’t mean what I said to him either. I’ll be back in a minute, okay?"

Joey nodded and gave him a quick kiss, then stepped back as Lance turned and walked over to stand in front of Chris. "I was an ass. You were just—"

"Lance, don’t," Chris interrupted him as he pulled Lance into his arms and hid his face against Lance’s neck. After a moment Lance wrapped his arms around Chris too, and then Chris took a deep breath and said softly, "I love you so much. I’m sorry."

JC gave Justin a concerned look over his shoulder but Justin didn’t even see JC look at him, he was too busy watching Chris and hoping he wasn’t crying. Justin, JC, and Joey all bawled like babies at sappy movies, and even Lance cried occasionally, but Chris never, ever cried. Chris had always been, well, moody – he could go from pissed to happy in five seconds flat – but they all knew that Chris had a difficult childhood and it had hardened him to the point he hardly ever let anyone, even them, see it when he was hurting. Chris could take a lot more emotionally than the others could, but it was often harder on him when he really opened up.

Lance held Chris close, turning his head to kiss Chris’ hair just before he said, "I’m sorry too, sweetheart." Lance stroked his hair a moment and held him, pretty shook by how upset Chris was. He was kicking himself for upsetting Chris so badly over something so stupid, and he had no clue how to make Chris feel better. "Joe?" Lance asked softly after another moment, sure Joey could fix this. Joey knew Chris better than Chris knew himself.

Joey walked over to stand behind Chris, wrapping his arms around him and leaning down to kiss the back of Chris’ neck. Lance looked worriedly at Joey over Chris’ shoulder but was reassured when Joey smiled at him. "Critter, come sit on the couch with Lance, okay?"

Chris didn’t respond so Joey looked pointedly at Lance, who then said, "Yeah, sweetheart, come sit with me, please?" Lance pulled at Chris gently and he didn’t resist at all as Lance led him to the couch and sat down. Chris was still looking upset but not crying or looking like he might, more like he was thinking really hard.

Chris finally seemed to snap out of it a bit when Lance sat down, climbing into Lance’s lap without asking and then curling up against his chest as Joey sat next to them and rubbed Chris’ back. "I know I’m obnoxious a lot of the time," Chris said after a moment, "I just don’t realize how what I say sounds until after I already said it, sometimes not for a while after I said it. I love you exactly like you are... James Lance Bass is the beautiful, sweet guy with the amazing green eyes that made me feel like a pedophile and then like a heel because I wanted him even though he was one of my best friends and I knew he was straight, and then he gave me something I was sure was gone forever..." Chris lifted his head and looked at Lance as if waiting for something then.

Lance smiled. "Joey."

Chris shook his head and gave him a soft, sweet smile. "No baby, my heart. Without you two I was just a bitter old man who was afraid to get near anyone because he always fucked it up. Now I’m your sweetheart and even his Critter again, and I’ve got everything I could ever ask for. Well, except maybe enough brains not to hurt you with stupid comments. I never wanted to hurt you." Chris looked unhappy again for a second but Lance smiled at him and gave him a squeeze and Chris quickly smiled back at him.

"I feel the same way," Lance said quietly. "You and Joey are the two most important people in the world to me." He smiled at Chris and then kissed him, taking his time and slowly deepening the kiss as Chris made a soft noise in his throat and slipped his arms around Lance’s neck.

JC and Justin exchanged grins, sure everything was fixed now, and moved over to sit on the chair and matching footstool near the couch. Joey saw their faces and gave them a grin and a nod just before Lance gently pulled away from Chris and smiled at him as he said, "Lets stop doing this, okay sweetheart?"

Chris affected a shocked look. "No, it’s not alright!" He paused a beat and then said, "I want to kiss you a whole lot more, and in a whole lot more places than just right here." Chris touched a finger to Lance’s lips with a grin, then kissed his nose and said, "We do have to stop getting upset with each other, though. I wanna spend all our free time rolling around with Joe or kissing and cuddling, not trying to explain to each other how sorry we are for something we did or said."

Lance chuckled and gave him another squeeze, leaning forward to kiss him quickly. "I agree completely."

Joey nodded and reached over to ruffle Lance’s hair as he said, "And from now on, do like Juppy said and tell us when you’re not happy about something, okay? We wouldn’t hurt you for the world but neither one of us is the brightest bulb in the box."

Chris laughed. "That’s the understatement of the year. Sometimes we need hit over the head with something to notice it."

Justin spoke up then, grinning. "So Lance, you said they get to call you baby, and you’ve already made it plain you like calling Chris sweetheart... What are you going to call Joey?"

Lance grinned at Justin, then looked over at Joey. "Whatever pops into my head at the moment, just like I wanted to all along. You think you can live with that, Joe?"

"That’s okay with me baby, whatever you want." Joey chuckled and leaned over to give Lance a kiss, not at all surprised when Chris leaned back to kiss him as soon as he let go of Lance.

Lance watched them with a smile and as soon as they broke the kiss he said, "C’mon guys, lets go eat. Joe, you and Chris can find something to eat in all that food your mom sent I know, and if Justin doesn’t eat the eggrolls you guys ordered I’ll have them for lunch tomorrow."

Joey looked at him in surprise and Chris said incredulously, "You planned that all along, didn’t you?!"

Lance grinned. "Well, yeah. C and I never get to have Chinese, and you two have all that great food in there to choose from, so I figured this was a good night for it."

Justin looked at JC. "I notice I wasn’t offered any of the pasta. It’s a good thing I love eggrolls, huh?"

JC chuckled and stood to cross the room back to the breakfast bar. "Quit fussing, baby. You can have pasta another time, eggrolls are only good fresh." Justin grinned and stood to follow him, and after a moment Chris, Lance, and Joey were all in the kitchen, Lance re-heating the Chinese food while Joey and Chris looked through the fridge and debated what to eat. Justin and JC sat at the breakfast bar watching them and eating the still-warm egg rolls, smiling as they watched Lance lean against the counter by the microwave to watch Joey and Chris.

 


	29. Chapter 29

 

~~~~29~~~~

 

Lance had given JC his re-heated plate of sweet and sour rice and Justin had already eaten half a dozen eggrolls by the time Joey and Chris finally picked out what they’d eat. The two had decided on lasagna because there were three dishes of it, but then they started debating how long it needed to reheat and were soon arguing back and forth over it.

When Lance took his plate out of the microwave a couple of minutes later and they had still not agreed – Joey was saying seven minutes on high and Chris insisted four on medium was right – he looked at them both in exasperation and said, "Just sit down and let me do it! You’d cremate it," he looked at Joey, "and you would take a week to heat it," he looked at Chris, "while I will do it right." He put his plate on the table then, giving JC and Justin a wink before he turned back to the other two, waiting for an answer.

Joey looked at Chris, who looked right back before they both grinned at Lance. "Yessir, boss, here y’go," Joey said, offering Lance the dish with a big grin. "It’ll taste better if you do it, I know. You’re right, I always cremate stuff, and Chris always has to heat it two or three times and by then it winds up cremated too."

Chris nodded as Lance took the dish with an answering grin. "Of course I’m right, there’s a reason I handle most of the microwave cooking, y’know. Now you two go sit down, okay?" Joey grinned and started past Lance with Chris right at his heels, and Lance walked over to put the pasta in the mircowave.

Lance got out plates for Joey and Chris once the lasagna was reheating and carried them over to put them on the table just as Chris said, "JC, dude, why are you eating all of a sudden?"

Lance paused to listen with a grin, wondering what JC’s answer would be.

JC looked up from his plate in surprise, his fork halfway to his mouth.  "Huh?"

Chris grinned. "Justin has been forcing you to eat for _years_ and you’ve fought him at almost every step until last night at supper. I’m still amazed you ate all that food, and then today you’ve gotten a real meal _twice_ without him having to even ask you to. What gives?"

JC looked at Justin as he put his fork on his plate, still looking surprised and Justin grinned at him. "He’s right, you have been eating more the last couple days. I just haven’t said anything ‘cause I didn’t want you to think too much about it and stop." He gave Chris a dirty look then, making Joey and Lance chuckle.

JC looked at his plate a moment, thinking, then looked up at the others as he shrugged. "I’ve just been hungry, I don’t know why."

Chris snorted. "But you’ve been eating _three times_ what you usually do for a couple days now. Were you not eating before because you were unhappy or something?"

JC looked thoughtful, and then shook his head slowly. "I don’t think so..." He shrugged. "I just don’t get hungry, or I haven’t in a long time."

Lance thought about what had changed in the last couple days – which truthfully was a lot when he thought about it – and one thing in particular made him suddenly grin. "Chris, sweetheart, you’ve already answered your question, you just don’t realize it."

The others all looked up at him in surprise as Chris asked, "I did?! When?"

Lance’s grin widened. "Yesterday morning, at the hotel."

JC and Justin looked expectantly at Chris, who was thinking hard and trying to remember what he’d said, but Joey suddenly chuckled and nodded. "I think you’re right, Scoop."

Chris made a face at Joey and looked up at Lance. "Okay, we’ve established I’m right, whatever it was I said, so spill it! What did I say?"

Lance grinned. "You said it looks like getting laid really agrees with our dear sweet Joshua."

Justin laughed, but JC gave Chris a shocked look and blurted, "You said _what_?!"

Chris laughed. "Hey man, it’s just the truth! You’re happier than I’ve seen you in _years_ , and all that’s changed is you and Jup finally hooking up." He looked up at Lance. "And you’re right, I’m right, getting laid agrees with him." Joey chuckled at the look on JC’s face but Chris just grinned at Justin and went on, "I wanna know one thing though. Josh doesn’t eat more when we’re rehearsing sixteen hours a day and sweating like pigs, so what’s he doing with you that’s making him so hungry?"

Lance chuckled at the look on JC’s face, sure JC was about to tell Justin not to answer, but Justin said, "Wouldn’t you like to know!" He smirked and took another bite of the eggroll he’d been eating when Chris started the conversation.

Chris made a face at Justin and then looked at JC, who grinned at him and said, "Don’t look at me, man. I’m just gonna sit here eating my supper like a good boy." JC took a big bite of rice as if to prove his point.

"But enquiring minds wanna know!" Chris said after a moment, still looking at the two of them. "I promise not to tell anyone..." He gave them a big grin and went on, "I won’t have to, Joe and Lance can hear you."

Lance chuckled again and went to check the food in the microwave, then leaned against the counter to watch the others.

JC just grinned and chewed his food, and it was Justin who swallowed and grinned at Chris as he said, "Chris, dude, there’s some things a guy just doesn’t need to know, even about his best friends."

Chris’ eyebrows went up. "Okay, now I’m even more curious! You two aren’t into kinky S&M shit or anything, right?"

Justin looked lost but JC quickly swallowed and gave Chris a dirty look. "No, we are not! We do get a little kinky, maybe, but not S&M or anything like that."

Justin looked at JC in surprise. "What do we do that’s kinky?! And what’s S&M?"

Chris and Joey both grinned as the microwave binged and Lance grabbed a hand towel off the counter to use as a potholder, pausing to see what JC would tell him.

JC made a face. "You don’t need to know, baby. It’s some weird stuff and I’m not gonna do it with you."

Chris’ eyebrows went up a little at that but Justin just snorted and let it slide. "Okay, we won’t do weird stuff. What do we already do that’s kinky, and why don’t I know about it?"

Lance shook his head, chuckling, and opened the microwave to get the lasagna out.

Chris laughed at Justin’s cluelessness, earning almost identical dirty looks from JC and Justin as JC stood up and said, "Come with me a minute, baby."

JC started across the room towards their bedroom and Justin willingly rose to follow him as Chris said, "Hey, no fair, I wanna know too!"

Joey laughed as JC and Justin disappeared into their room. Lance put the lasagna on the table, and then went to get a spatula.

Chris looked at the closed door across the room and said, "Now they’ve got me all curious, it’s not fair."

Lance chuckled and sat down, handing Joey the spatula so he could fill his and Chris’ plates. "Chris, sweetheart, there’s some things they’re just not gonna share... You wouldn’t tell them everything we do, right?"

Chris looked surprised, then grinned at Lance. "Well, I probably would if they asked, but JC’d _never_ let Jup ask me."

Joey chuckled and slid a plate of pasta over in front of Chris. "Here you, eat."

Chris stuck his tongue out at Joey but picked up his fork to eat.

"Even if he asks you don’t have to tell him, Chris,” Lance said, amused. “Like Justin said, there’s some things even your best friends don’t necessarily need to know." Lance dug into his sweet and sour pork just as the door to JC and Justin’s room opened again and they both came out.

Chris looked up and saw their faces – JC was grinning and Justin looked fairly smug – and then gave Lance a dirty look. "I’ll be good, but just for you." Chris took a mouthful of lasagna and started chewing on it, giving JC and Justin a dirty look too as they sat down to finish their supper.

Joey chuckled and Lance smiled at Chris. "Thank you. If they wanted us to know they would tell us."

JC gave Lance a grateful look and started eating his rice again as Justin looked at Chris and grinned. "He made me promise not to tell you man, sorry."

Chris made a face and swallowed. "Why am I not surprised? Two of my best friends are getting kinky together and I don’t get to watch _or_ hear about it. That’s so unfair." The others all laughed at him and he snorted. "And I don’t even get any sympathy."

They ate in silence for a little while then, and JC was almost finished with his meal when Chris suddenly grinned at him and asked, "If I tell you something will you tell me something just as good?"

JC narrowed his eyes at him and chewed thoughtfully for a minute, then swallowed. "You’re not gonna just drop it are you?"

Chris just grinned. "I’ll even tell you some things I bet nobody in the world but me and Joe knows..."

Justin looked interested but JC just snorted. "And you think Lance isn’t going to kill you for telling us?"

Chris looked questioningly at Lance, who sighed and then gave JC a wry look. "I’m not ashamed of anything I’ve done with him. I wouldn’t want him telling my _mom_ , but telling you two is okay."

Chris grinned while Joey chuckled and said, "You shouldn’t have told him that, babe. Chris likes talking about sex almost as much as he likes having sex."

Chris grinned at JC. "C’mon man, is it a deal? I tell you something, you tell me something just as good?"

JC gave him a long look while Justin watched JC with a little grin, then JC looked at Justin. "You want me to agree, baby? It’s as much about you as it is about me."

Justin’s grin widened. "I’m like Lance, I ain’t ashamed. I’m pretty proud of myself actually, millions of girls all over the world would kill to be me for one night."

Joey and Lance both chuckled and Chris winked at Justin.

JC just grinned and shook his head. "You really are completely shameless, aren’t you?"

Justin laughed. "Babe, it took you this long to figure that out?!"

JC chuckled, then looked at Chris. "Okay, I’ll take your deal, but you gotta go first and everyone has to get to hear it or no dice." He looked at the others and asked, "Sound fair?"

Lance and Joey exchanged a look then grinned. "Sure," Joey said, "and we’ll make sure you two play fair."

JC looked expectantly at Chris, who said, "Lance’s voice is so made for porn."

Lance rolled his eyes and took a bite of his dinner, looking at JC to see what he’d say in reply to something so obvious.

JC laughed. "Justin can put both his ankles behind his neck. Or mine."

Chris grinned. "Joey can pick me up without even trying hard."

JC snorted. "Justin can too. And he can also pick me up." JC took a bite of his dinner while Joey chuckled and Lance grinned.

Chris’ eyes got a wicked little twinkle and he said, "Joe likes to sixty-nine."

JC cocked his head to one side as if thinking while he chewed, then swallowed and smirked. "Justin likes everything."

Chris was about to speak again when Justin said, "Wait, I gotta question."

Chris grinned. "Infant, don’t tell me. You don’t know what sixty-nining is, right?"

Justin made a face at him, and then looked at JC expectantly. JC chuckled and leaned over to whisper something in his ear and Justin’s eyes went a little wide, then he grinned. "Babe, we have so got to try that." JC just grinned at him while Joey, Lance, and Chris all laughed.

"Okay," Chris said a moment later. "Hmm... Lance likes to have sex in the shower."

Lance laughed. "Doesn’t everyone?"

JC grinned at Chris. "Lance’s right, that one’s too easy."

Chris shrugged. "Okay... I’m a good little bottom boy." Joey laughed and Lance made a face at Chris.

JC thought a moment and then said, "I’m good at giving blowjobs."

Justin grinned and said, "For sure."

JC turned a little red as the other three laughed.

Chris cocked his head to one side and looked speculatively at JC and then at Justin, then said, "I’ve had gay sex in front of people I didn’t know."

JC shrugged and said, "Me too."

"Dude," Joey said, looking from JC to Chris and back, "this was like, a long time ago I hope?"

Chris shrugged. "You were there, Joe."

Joey looked relieved, then looked at JC expectantly.

JC looked sheepish. "It was a bit over a year ago, one of Tony’s girlfriends walked in on us. She didn’t know it was me though, she gave him a ration of bull about cheating on her with an ugly girl who didn’t even bother to shave her legs." He snorted. "She obviously didn’t understand the whole concept of being a beard..."

Chris chuckled. "Woman was obviously blind as a bat too. Okay next one... Hmm. Oh, I know a good one! I’ve tried fisting, both ways."

Joey chuckled at the look on JC’s face, and Lance looked at Chris with his eyebrows raised and a speculative look.

JC blushed and he looked at the table as he said, "I’ve been fisted, once." Justin opened his mouth and JC said, "Baby, I’ll tell you later."

Joey and Lance chuckled as Chris smirked at Justin.

"Why not just show me?" Justin asked with a sudden grin, and JC’s eyes went a little wide as he shook his head vehemently but didn’t say anything.

"I’ve come four times in one night," Chris said with a grin.

"Is that all?" Justin asked, looking surprised, and everyone looked first at him, then at JC, who turned an even brighter red.

"Well, Josh?" Chris asked, smirking.

"Five times, if you define night as any time between dark and when you get dressed the next morning," JC said, his face as red as they’d ever seen it. "And that’s all I’m saying."

"Wow," Joey said, and Chris looked suitably impressed. Lance grinned, thinking that if Justin knew that it had to have happened pretty recently, and Justin didn’t seem impressed which made Lance wonder a bit about Justin.

Chris looked at Justin and then at JC and said, "Lance likes to ride."

Justin snorted. "Dude, everyone knows that."

JC looked at him, lips twitching. "Umm.. Baby, he didn’t mean horses."

Justin’s eyes widened, then he blushed. “Oh.”

JC looked at Justin with a little grin playing at the corners of his mouth for a second, then looked at Chris and said, "I like to ride, too."

"Lance hates it if you get him all hot and bothered and then don’t let him come," Chris said immediately, earning a snort from Lance.

JC pursed his lips, thinking, and Justin said, "Josh hates to come first." JC looked up at him in surprise, then shrugged and looked expectantly at Chris.

Chris grinned. "I’m a member of the mile-high club."

Joey laughed as Lance shook his head and chuckled, but Justin looked impressed.

JC snorted. "I’m not."

Chris stuck his tongue out at JC, then grinned wickedly and said, "I’ve never been rimmed."

Lance’s eyebrows went up and he looked at Joey, who just shrugged, then Lance grinned at Chris and said, "I can fix that." Chris looked surprised, then grinned back at him while Joey chuckled.

JC grinned. "Justin has."

Joey and Lance both laughed and Chris’ eyebrows went up as he looked at JC.

"Just exactly what else have you done to the kid?" Chris asked after a minute, grinning.

"We’re not asking questions, remember?" JC grinned then and said, "Game over," and took a drink of his water.

"Hey!" Chris said, but Joey and Lance just laughed.

Justin made a face at JC and then asked, "Why do I get the feeling I’ve done all sorts of things I wouldn’t know I’d done if somebody asked me?"

JC smirked. "Probably because it’s the truth."

The other three laughed again at the look on Justin’s face then and Justin pouted at JC for a long minute, then said, "Babe?" JC looked at him questioningly and Justin grinned and said, "What happened to the guy who blushed every time I kissed him in front of his three best friends?"

Chris, Joey, and Lance exchanged grins and looked expectantly at JC, waiting for him to answer while JC looked thoughtful for all of a second, then grinned at Justin. "He’s got a partner now who’s very talented in bed, but likes to listen to his friends talk about sex because he thinks he doesn’t know enough."

Justin blushed as the other three all laughed and JC stood, looking at Justin’s empty plate and asking, "You done, baby?" Justin nodded and JC took his plate with a smile, then looked at the other three expectantly and took Lance’s empty plate when he offered it. JC put them all in the sink and then put the left over Chinese food in the fridge before he paused to stretch with his back towards the table, reaching up with both hands until the others could hear joints popping.

Joey flinched and Chris said, "Damn, Jayce, that’s nice to watch but doesn’t it hurt?"

JC turned quickly, looking surprised. "No, it doesn’t hurt. If it looks painful why would it be nice to watch?"

Justin grinned because he knew the answer to that one as Lance gave JC a tolerant smile and said, "Josh, sweetheart, you’re always nice to watch."

JC blushed as Joey and Chris both nodded, grinning, and Chris said, "Yeah, and when you stretch like that it shows off your ass."

Justin laughed at the look on JC’s face and said, "It’s a good thing I trust you guys or I might think you were trying to turn his head." He paused a second, then went on smugly, "Not that you could, but still."

Chris made a face at him while Joey and Lance grinned.

JC chuckled and then looked at Lance to ask, "What time is it, Scoop?"

Lance looked at his watch and then back up at JC. "Almost ten, why?"

JC cocked his head slightly to one side. "Don’t Mike and Charlie get off soon?"

Lance nodded and stood to walk towards his room as he said over his shoulder, "They sure do, thanks. Mike’s supposed to call when they get off." He disappeared into his room for a minute and then came back out with Chris’ cell phone, carrying it over to put it on the coffee table before he flopped down to sprawl on the couch.

JC walked over to sit on the other end of the couch with a grin, followed quickly by Justin, who started to sit on the arm of the couch by him until JC chuckled and said, "Just sit in my lap, baby. We both know you’ll wind up there."

Justin grinned and did as he’d been told, curling up with both arms around JC and burying his face against JC’s neck to nibble the sensitive skin below his ear before he rested his cheek on JC’s collarbone and behaved himself, looking at Lance as Joey and Chris finished their supper.

JC looked at Lance too and asked, "So what are we gonna do this evening? Watch a movie? I’m not at all sleepy yet, it’s too early."

"A movie sounds good," Lance said with a smile as he got back up to go get the remote. "I’ll see what’s on." Lance walked back over to sit down once he’d found the remote for the television – there were four remotes to choose from on the shelf – and then turned it on and began channel surfing.

JC and Justin watched Lance idly clicking through channels for about five minutes, occasionally laughing or commenting on something as he flipped methodically past it, before Lance stopped with a laugh. A guy with dyed white hair in a body suit was standing next to several other guys dressed and dyed the same way while one of them spoke in a high falsetto.

JC and Justin looked at the screen a moment and both grinned as JC said, "Oh! That’s a classic man!"

Chris stood to put up his plate then, looking at the television before he laughed. "I haven’t seen that in _years_ , baby, that is a good one. Just getting good too."

Chris headed towards the sink to put his plate away, grinning as Joey turned in his chair to look at the screen and then said, "Oh yeah, ‘ _Ice Pirates_ ’ is a classic. We gotta watch it."

Chris put the lid on what was left of the lasagna and put it away, then walked over to the couch and gave Lance a little pouty look. Lance chuckled and put the remote down, then shifted slightly and opened his arms, making Chris grin as he climbed up into his lap and settled down comfortably to watch the movie.

Joey turned off the light in the kitchen and joined them a few minutes later, and before long they were all laughing and joking about the hokey special effects of the movie.

They had settled down a bit by the time they got to the infamous sex scene in the holodeck, but Chris still had to heckle them, making Lance and Joey both laugh. Lance noticed JC and Justin were quiet about then and looked over past Joey to see they were too busy kissing to watch the movie.

Lance nudged Chris then and nodded his head towards them with a grin, making the older man in his lap look over at the couple. Chris poked Joey then to get his attention and pointed at the other two.

Joey, Chris, and Lance watched JC and Justin kiss for a few minutes, grinning, before Chris said, "I never would have though ‘ _Ice Pirates_ ’ was a good makeout movie."

JC and Justin parted after a second and Justin grinned at them as he said, "Dude, it was the whole wet sex thing."

JC chuckled and was about to say something when the cell phone on the coffee table rang.

Lance grabbed the remote to mute the television as Joey leaned to get the cell phone and hand it to Lance, who couldn’t get it because he had a lapful of Chris. Lance took it with a grin for Joey, then flicked it open and said, "Hello."

"Hey boss!" Charlie’s enthusiastic voice immediately replied. "Checking in, just like Mike said we would."

Lance grinned. "Hey Charlie! How’s everything going for you two?"

Charlie chuckled. "Going great! We’ve gotten everything taken care of except the physical tomorrow morning. My mom is going to keep our Tracker for us after we leave until we get a place in Orlando, and Mike’s already packed and ready to go since his parents wanted him out. If you guys don’t need anything, we were going to go find him a motel for the night before I head home to pack my stuff."

"No reason for you to go look for a hotel, we’ve got extra rooms here you’re welcome to. The balconies have a great view and the food’s pretty good, and I can vouch for the fact nobody will bother you unless you want bothered." Lance grinned at the other four sitting on the couch with him and listened as he heard Charlie tell Mike what he’d just said, then Mike said something to Charlie, making him laugh and tell Mike to watch his mouth.

"Okay, boss, we’ll take you up on the offer. You’re giving me a good excuse to go pack right now and spend the whole night with Mikey, you know that, right?" Charlie asked, his tone of voice making it plain he was grinning.

Lance chuckled. "That had crossed my mind, yeah, but I figured you wouldn’t mind. Lonnie already has passes for you two waiting at the front desk, is there anything else you need?"

"No sir," Charlie answered. "Anything we can bring you guys when we come? Some movies or pizza or something?"

"Lemme check, can you hold on just a sec?"

"Sure!" Charlie said, "Take your time boss, we’re in no hurry." Lance heard Mike’s voice in the background say, "Speak for yourself," and he grinned.

"Okay," Lance said, "Be right back." He took the phone away from his face and looked at the others. "Anything we need them bring?"

Chris nodded immediately. "Yup! A couple cases of Mountain Dew would be good, and some paper plates ‘cause we got a lot of food to eat and we ain’t doin’ dishes this week."

Lance chuckled and looked at the other three. "Joe, I know you want some Dr Pepper, too... Anything else?"

Joey shook his head with a smile and looked at JC and Justin, and Justin grinned and said, "Brit sent us the only thing I was gonna have them bring."

JC chuckled and shook his head while Lance laughed and put the phone back by his ear. "Charlie?"

There was a muffled noise on the other end and then Charlie’s voice said softly, "Dammit Mike, get off me, you can wait until later." There was silence a second while Lance grinned and waited, then Charlie’s voice said, "Sorry about that, Mikey’s being annoying. What’d you need boss?"

Mike’s voice was clearly audible in the background as he said indignantly, "Annoying?! Kissing you is annoying?!"

Lance chuckled. "Don’t worry about it, I know all about annoying lapfuls."

"Hey!" Chris said with a grin, "I resemble that remark!"

Lance made a face at Chris while Charlie laughed, then Lance said, "When you guys come would you bring us a couple cases each of Mountain Dew and Dr Pepper? We’re out and water isn’t really gonna cut it for long."

"No problem," Charlie answered. "That all, boss? I can pick up anything you need, I know there’s some things you probably can’t buy without attracting attention..." Charlie trailed off, not quite comfortable asking them right out if they needed any more personal supplies, but wanting to make the offer anyway.

Lance grinned. "And I’m sure eventually we’ll be sending you out for stuff like that, but right now we’re covered. We—"

"Scoop, don’t forget the paper plates," Chris said with a grin.

Lance laughed. "And some paper plates... Joey’s mom sent us a bunch of food and Chris insists we’re not washing dishes."

Charlie chuckled. "Okay, Mountain Dew, Dr Pepper and paper plates. That it?"

Lance nodded. "Yeah, that should do it. We appreciate it, guys."

Charlie smiled and said, "Hey, no problem, we’re glad to help. It shouldn’t take me and Mike too long to pack my stuff, and there’s a Wal-Mart just up the road from y’all so we ought to be there in an hour or so, okay?"

"Sounds great!" Lance replied. "Just come on up when you get here – you have our room number, right?"

"Yeah, Mike wrote it down earlier. We’ll see you soon, okay?" Charlie asked.

"Alright, we’ll be here." Lance hung up a moment later, and then looked at the other four. "They’re gonna go pack up Charlie’s things and then swing by Wal-Mart on the way here, oughta be here in an hour or so he said."

Justin grinned. "Great, plenty of time for me and Josh to go take a shower. I smell and my hair is itching me to death."

He climbed off JC’s lap and offered him a hand to pull him up as JC chuckled and said, "Baby, you don’t smell."

Justin snorted as he pulled JC to his feet. "Oh yes I do, I smell like a beach crawled up in my hair and died.

JC laughed. "But I like how beaches smell."

Justin grinned wickedly and started dragging him towards their room. "Good, then you won’t mind playing with me before I’m clean."

Lance chuckled and picked up the remote to find something on TV because they had missed the end of ‘ _Ice Pirates_ ’. Within a few minutes he was leaning up against Joey’s shoulder with Chris sprawled happily over them both while they waited through the previews on HBO for ‘ _Independence Day_ ’ to start.

 


	30. Chapter 30

 

~~~~30~~~~

 

When Mike and Charlie knocked on the door well over an hour later, Lance was asleep on the couch curled up against Joey’s shoulder with Chris still mostly in Lance’s lap, also asleep. JC and Justin were sprawled together in the floor in sweats and t-shirts, watching the movie.

JC looked up when he heard the knock and saw that Lance and Chris were both asleep, so JC gave Joey a grin and hopped up to go answer it.

JC opened the door and then grinned at Mike and Charlie as he said, "Hey guys, come on in." He moved back into the room, gesturing for them to follow him. "You can just drop your bags here for right now and I’ll go ask Lonnie for the key to one of the extra rooms in a minute, okay?"

Mike and Charlie grinned back at him and followed him inside, putting two gym bags down just inside the door and following him into the kitchen with the drinks and a Wal-Mart bag to set them on the counter. Justin waved from his seat in the floor as Joey grinned and waved, then there was whoop on the movie and they both looked back just as Will Smith said, " _I gotta get me one of these!_ "

Mike watched JC as he began to put the drinks in the fridge then while Charlie said quietly, "We can go ask Lonnie for the key so you can go finish your movie. No reason for you to miss it, Mr. Chasez."

JC stopped emptying the first case of Mountain Dew to look up at Charlie and Mike. "First off, only people we don’t like have to call us mister anything." He grinned at them and went on, "I’m JC," he pointed towards the others and said, "Justin’s in the floor, Joey’s playing pillow for Lance, and Chris is pretending he’s a lapdog. Secondly, I’ve seen the movie a dozen times and won’t miss it a bit, and third I have no clue which room has what so I was gonna wait until Lance wakes up to go get your key ‘cause I know he knows." JC gave him an impish grin and started putting drinks up again. "You guys wanna watch the rest of the movie with us, or eat some supper or something?"

Charlie chuckled and looked at Mike, who grinned and went to go sit in the empty chair near the couch to watch the movie. "We ate at the pier. Watching the movie’ll be fine. We didn’t keep you guys up did we?"

JC finished the case of Mountain Dew and pitched the empty box at the trash can, then opened a case of Dr. Pepper and crouched to start putting them on the bottom shelf in the fridge too. "Oh no, we weren’t ready for bed yet, it’s hard to go to sleep at a decent hour after touring so long. Jup and I needed a shower – we went swimming at the beach today – and while we were busy the other three decided to watch a movie. Lance has seen this one a hundred times so once he got comfortable he was out like a light, and Chris put up a good fight but he was asleep too by the time Justin and I got out of the shower." JC looked over the refrigerator door at Charlie to grin at him. "Chris doesn’t like to admit it but he loves to cuddle, and it seems to be the easiest way to get him to go to sleep."

Charlie grinned back at him and JC disappeared from view again. After a couple of minutes his curiosity got the better of him though and he said, "JC? Do you mind if I ask a few questions? I don’t wanna be nosy or anything, but..."

JC put the last can in the fridge and then shut it, smiling at Charlie. "No man, ask away... We already decided you two are gonna be in the know, it’ll make it easier on all of us. I should make one thing completely clear right now while I’m thinking about it though; you two already know more than people who have been with us for years." JC gestured towards the trio on the couch and then went on, "Nobody but you guys and our bodyguards know about them and we need to keep it that way, okay? As far as the rest of the crew is concerned Justin is pretty close to marrying Brit, I’m pissed at women in general because my last girlfriend treated me like crap, and Chris, Joe, and Lance are all workin’ the field pretty regular."

Charlie nodded. "I understand. One of the things I wanted to ask you was exactly who is safe to talk to if anyone asks us questions."

JC smiled and said, "You two will probably know everything or close to it, we’re all planning to drive you crazy, but other than that it’s just our security and Brit that’s safe to talk to. It’s been just the five of us for so long that having friends along on tour is gonna be a nice change, especially since you two can go places we can’t." He gestured to the seats at the table and said, "Why don’t you have a seat and I’ll answer everything I can, okay?"

Charlie smiled and went to sit down. "Thanks," he said, and then waited for JC to sit down before he said, "Okay, I guess I’ll start with you and Justin. We’ve thought you two were together for a while, but from what you just said you haven’t been..." Charlie trailed off and JC smiled.

"Justin and I have both been hiding how we felt for years," he said with a wry smile, "acting straight and convincing even each other we were nothing more than really close friends. We’d probably all still be avoiding the whole idea that either of us might be gay if I hadn’t admitted I was kind of by accident after our concert Friday night. One thing led to another after that, and I told Jup I’ve been in love with him for years, then Lance told us he’s been with Joe for almost a year, and Justin scared me to death before he finally got Brit to tell me he’s been in love with me almost since we met..."

JC gave him another wry look as he went on, "Joe and Lance have both been in love with Chris for years without telling anyone but each other, and Chris loves those two more than anything, and they all finally admitted it to each other. Jup and I are just gonna be forever," he added quietly, turning to look across the room at Justin with a little smile.

Charlie looked surprised. "You’ve only been together a few days? Wow... You two must have been the closest friends ever or something, Mike and I have thought you were a couple for years now..."

JC chuckled and turned to look back over at Charlie. "One of our bodyguards said pretty much the same thing, and he’s lived in our back pockets since this all started six years ago. Justin and I have loved each other since before the group – Brit says Juppy has been driving her batty about me since just after we met – but I was determined Justin should make the first move, and he was sure I was straight."

JC smiled then. "We both got pretty homesick in Europe and spent a lot of time together, but we still managed to convince each other we were straight. Emotionally we may as well have been together since neither of us dated at all then, and I know we were closer than friends really are, but we never admitted it or acted on it. The other guys have said in the last few days that they even had doubts when the group first got together, but they realized we were just really, really close after a while... I think Chris still had his doubts about me right up until this week, but we all thought Justin was straight." He chuckled softly. "Now my best friend in the world has admitted he’s gay and just as in love as I am, and I couldn’t be happier."

Charlie smiled. "I know how a little of you feel, I think. Mike and I have been best friends forever, but I can’t imagine living with him day in and day out and not saying anything. We got together way back in junior high, kind of by accident at first. Both of us were curious but neither of us had ever even seriously kissed a girl, though we had both dated and been to dances and things like that. Well, Mike wondered what it would be like to kiss me one evening while we were at the library doing homework and, being Mike, he did. I was so surprised that he was scared I’d be mad and started apologizing, so I kissed him to shut him up before anyone else heard him." Charlie chuckled. "We took a while to get really serious – over a year – but I’ve known since that first kiss that I’d spend my life with Mike, if he let me."

JC smiled at him. "You two were lucky... I wish—m" He broke off as Justin suddenly put his arms around JC from behind and ducked his head to lick JC’s neck, making JC giggle as he tried ineffectually to push Justin off. "Baby, quit, I’m trying to talk."

Justin lifted his head and grinned down at JC as he said, "But I wanted a snack."

JC chuckled, leaning back against Justin’s stomach to look up at him. "There’s plenty of food in the fridge, baby, and drinks too."

Justin gave JC a wicked grin. "But the snack I want is right here." He ducked his head again, this time nibbling at JC’s throat.

JC squirmed and giggled, finally managing to push Justin away after a minute. "Baby quit, I mean it! Either sit down and behave yourself or go watch the movie, okay?" JC smiled at him to take the sting out of his words.

Justin pouted at him for a few seconds and then let go with a theatrical sigh and headed into the kitchen as he said, "If you’re gonna be mean I guess I’ll have to make do with a candy bar."

JC watched him with a grin as Charlie chuckled and said, "I can tell you have pretty much the same problem I do. Mikey doesn’t like to hear ‘not now’ either, not if we’re alone."

JC grinned at Charlie while Justin looked in the fridge for the candy JC had bought earlier that day. "Yeah, Justin hates people telling him no and he doesn’t listen half the time when someone does.” JC laughed. “Well, okay, so _most_ of the time he doesn’t listen."

Justin snorted and hopped up on the kitchen counter to eat the Nestle’s Crunch he’d found. "That’s not true, you tell me no all the time and I always listen to you."

JC grinned at him. "Yeah, baby, which is why everyone has always told me to make you behave when you get annoying." Charlie chuckled as JC asked, "Was the movie over?"

Justin nodded, smiling. "Yeah, but one of the ‘ _Die Hard_ _’_ movies – ‘ _Vengeance_ ’ I think – is next and Joe’s comfortable enough he says he’ll watch it a while and let Chris and Lance sleep."

JC chuckled and looked at Charlie. "Joe likes Bruce Willis movies, so he’s pretty well set for a while. Did you have more questions?"

Charlie nodded. "Yeah... You guys aren’t coming out, obviously, but do you care if Mike and I do? We’ve hidden that we’re together for so long it’s second nature – there’s only three people who know besides you guys and your security – so hiding it isn’t a problem if you’d prefer we did."

JC quickly shook his head. "No, one of the reasons we wanted to hire you guys was to give you a chance to be what you wanna be, and that includes together, right?" He paused and Charlie nodded, then JC went on, "We have people working for us who are gay and out – dancers, one of our makeup ladies and several folks in our crew – and everyone knows we hire whoever we like for a job, not who’s straight or gay or whatever."

Justin looked up then to smile at Mike as the younger man walked over to join them, listening as JC went on.

"Justin and I have gone without personal assistants for a while now, and we like you so you’re in. Nobody will argue with that no matter what, not our manager, not Jive, and certainly not the rest of our people. You’re not like the other PA’s though, you two are on our personal payroll like our security guys and you answer only to us. That gives you a lot of freedom the other assistants don’t have because Jive hired them, not us, and they answer to Jive. Whether you come out or not is totally up to you two, and if anyone gives you two any crap we want to know, okay?"

Justin nodded. "Yeah man, our crew knows we don’t put up with homophobic shit, so you _have_ to tell us if you have any trouble."

Mike put a hand on Charlie’s shoulder and said quietly, "It’s up to Charlie. He has the most to lose if his family finds out. I found out last night mine already suspected, and when I confirmed it I was told not to come back."

JC gave Mike a wry smile, remembering when he’d been told pretty much the same thing.

Charlie looked up at Mike and smiled at him. "No, Mikey, it’ll still affect you just as much as it will me... Do you want everyone to know you’re with me?"

Mike smiled back down at him and asked, "Charles Edward Kohl, have I ever given you cause to think I could be ashamed of being with you?"

Charlie grinned up at him and lifted one of his hands to cover Mike’s where it rested on his shoulder. "Nope."

"Then what makes you think I don’t want the world to know?" Mike asked with an answering grin. "If they do then I don’t have to pretend to look at pretty girls anymore, and I’ll be able to grab your ass if I feel like it without having to come up with an excuse to get you alone first."

Justin laughed as Charlie gave Mike a dirty look and then looked at JC to say, "I think we should begin as we mean to go on. I was willing to stay in the closet if you guys or Mike wanted us to, but since you don’t I think we’ll come out. I’m tired of hiding."

Mike bent to kiss Charlie quickly, then grinned at him. "I love you, even if you worry too much and you’re way too serious sometimes."

Charlie chuckled. "And I love you too, even if you’re about half crazy and completely incorrigible."

JC grinned at them. "You two are going to fit right in with the five of us, I can tell."

Justin nodded, grinning. "Yup, and now we have two impartial observers to settle all our arguments."

Mike, Charlie, and JC all laughed, but they quieted quickly when they heard Lance say sleepily, "Hey guys... When did you get here?" They all turned quickly to look over at the couch to see Chris on his way to the bathroom while Lance stood and stretched, smiling at them.

"Did we wake you up, Scoop?" JC asked, concerned.

"Oh no, Chris had to move and it was kinda impossible for him to get up without waking me up too." Lance smiled at JC as he started to walk towards the kitchen with Joey rising to follow him after he turned off the TV. "Glad to see you guys," Lance said to Charlie and Mike, "Did you have a good day?" He continued into the kitchen to open the refrigerator and take out a Dr. Pepper while Joey sat in the empty chair at the end of the breakfast bar.

Charlie nodded, smiling. "Yeah... Said goodbye to a few people and got finals out of the way, how about you?"

Lance smiled and opened his can as he walked back over to stand by Joey. "It was really nice. We got to sleep in – I can’t remember the last time I slept more than six hours in a row – and then we spent the afternoon at the state park." Lance took a drink of his Dr. Pepper, and then offered it to Joey with a smile.

Chris walked out of the bathroom as Mike asked incredulously, "You guys – the biggest pop group in the _world_! – were on the _Grand Strand_ with money and time to kill and you spent your day _at the park_?!"

Chris laughed and walked over to flop down in the empty chair between JC and Joey. "When you put it that way it does sound pretty screwy, doesn’t it?"

Charlie chuckled as Mike nodded wordlessly.

"But you see, " Justin said, hopping off the counter to go stand behind JC with his arms draped around JC’s shoulders, "the park was deserted today, and we could all enjoy it without having to hide. Josh and I got to swim and lay on the beach, and these three," he nodded towards Joey, Chris, and Lance, "got to take a long walk together." Justin grinned wickedly at them and said, "Well, I’m sure they walked a little while anyway, we couldn’t hear them when they stopped."

Lance blushed as JC and Joey laughed, but Chris just snorted and said, "At least we didn’t lose anything on our walk, Infant."

"Hey, we figured out where I dropped my backpack eventually!" Justin gave him a big grin.

JC grinned at Chris and said, "We would have found it a lot faster if Justin had let go of me to look."

Lance chuckled and then said, "Josh, tell the truth. Did you know where the bag was all along?"

Justin looked down at JC, who just grinned at Lance and said, "I’m not answering that on the grounds I might incriminate myself."

Justin laughed and swatted his shoulder. "You mean I stumbled around barefoot in the woods in the damn dark for ten minutes for no reason?!"

JC tipped his head further back against Justin’s stomach to look up at him, grinning impishly. "It wasn’t my fault, I seem to recall somebody tossing me over his shoulder and carrying me around instead of letting me help him look."

Justin grinned. "Well, yeah... You were moving too slow, and it’s not like it’s hard to carry you around."

Charlie and Mike exchanged grins and then Mike asked, "How did you wind up in the dark? All the paths are lighted over there..."

Justin and JC both blushed as Joey laughed.

"They just told us all the fun stuff happens off the path," Chris said with a snort.

Lance grinned. "We didn’t exactly stay by the path either, Chris..."

Chris returned the grin. "Yeah, but that was in daylight and we had a chaperone along."

Lance laughed. "We did? Who? Why didn’t I know he was there?"

Chris grinned a little wider. "Joe and I had Daddy Bass along with us to keep us out of trouble. He’s good at it, he manages to get all four of us to behave and enjoy it."

Joey chuckled while JC and Justin laughed.

Lance snorted. "And who kept me out of trouble?"

JC grinned and said, "Joey."

Joey looked surprised and Lance cocked an eyebrow, looking at Joey, then grinned. "I’ll go with that, Joe’s a whole lot more likely to keep me out of trouble than my other option."

"Hey!" Chris said, "I resemble that remark!"

The others all laughed.

Chris picked up the Dr. Pepper Lance and Joe had been drinking then only to find it empty, then looked up at Lance with a little grin. "Would you, purty please? You’re already up..."

Lance chuckled and said, "Pepper or Dew?" as he walked around to the ‘fridge.

"Dew, please," Chris replied with a big grin as Lance opened the fridge, "and one of those candy bars Josh put in there earlier too."

Lance snorted and shook his head, closing the ‘fridge firmly and walking back to the table with just the Mountain Dew. "Nope! I’m sharing a bed with you and I actually want to sleep sometime before morning. That means you can’t have a candy bar _and_ a Mountain Dew this late sweetheart, sorry."

Joey chuckled at the look on Chris’ face. "He has a point, Critter. The Dew alone will keep you and us awake for the next hour or two, and it’s already well after midnight I’m sure."

Lance handed Chris the Mounatin Dew and glanced at his watch. "It’s almost one o’clock." He looked up at Mike and Charlie then and said, "I’m sure you guys are tired, you had to get up early for school. I’ll go get your keycard, okay? Would you rather have the room that connects to ours, or the next one over? They’re the same except for the connecting door; pretty much identical to this one but with only one bedroom and balcony." Lance smiled at them.

Charlie looked at Mike, who grinned at Lance and said, "We couldn’t care less, boss, which ever you’d rather we were in. It’ll be so nice to stay with Charlie a whole night that you could tell us to sack out in your floor with nothing but a pillow and I’d still be happy."

Charlie chuckled and nodded, even though he blushed.

Lance grinned. "I’ll get you the keys for the room next door then, that way y’all can come over here without having to fight with unlocking the door to the hallway. You two are welcome anytime, and there’s plenty of food in the fridge and a room service menu on the front. I’ll be right back."

Lance headed for the door as Chris smiled at the two young men and said, "So I gather you two don’t get to sneak off together very often?"

Mike made a face. "Try almost never. I think I’m probably the only person who’s ever been in a committed relationship for over four years and only slept with my guy all night four or five times. I figure I’m doing good if we manage a goodnight kiss most of the time, much less more."

Charlie turned his head to grin up at him. "It’s not that bad, Mikey. We usually have time for a few hours together here and there."

Mike just snorted.

Chris chuckled. "Well, you’ll have a lot more time together now, I promise. Juppy here seems to be after Josh every ten minutes – I know I was never that horny, not even when I was twenty – and I’m a dirty old man who fully intends to drag Joe and Lance off alone at least a couple hours a day, so you two will have to keep yourselves occupied."

JC and Justin both turned red at Chris’ comment about them but Justin didn’t rise to the rather obvious bait.

Joey chuckled. "Just two hours?"

Chris grinned at him and said, "Showers and after we go to bed don’t count."

Justin laughed while Mike grinned at them and asked, "Do you guys mind if I ask a question?"

Chris laughed. "Naw, ask away. You’ll find out pretty quick I’m nosy as hell and I’ll ask anything, so there aren’t many questions that’ll annoy me."

Mike chuckled. "Good. Will it bother you guys if Charlie and I get a little friendly when we’re around you?"

Charlie’s face turned almost as red as his hair at that but he still listened for the answer.

Justin laughed as Joey grinned at them and said, "Dudes, we’re cool with most anything. If you can do it with at least some of your clothes on, have at it. JC and Justin do all the time, and they even manage to lose the clothes if we pretend not to watch them."

JC turned red and Justin grinned as Chris smirked and said, "Yep, that’s our Josh... Beautiful and sexy as hell but blushes at the very idea of his four best friends seeing him without his clothes, even though we all have a million times."

Lance walked back in as Chris was speaking and saw JC blush even redder as he said, "Yeah, but that didn’t count, you weren’t looking then."

Lance chuckled and handed Charlie the keycard as he said, "Josh sweetheart, I already told you it’s kind of impossible not to notice you. Juppy’s not the only one who’s found his shoes fascinating to keep from staring."

Joey laughed and Chris crowed, "I knew it! You have been ogling our dear, shy Joshua!"

Lance grinned at him and walked over to stand behind Joey, resting his hands on Joey’s shoulders. "I have not! I’ve just noticed it’s a good idea not to look too close on the rare occasions when he’s not hiding how beautiful he is under all those terrible clothes."

Mike, Joey and Chris laughed as JC said, "Hey! My clothes aren’t that bad!"

Justin chuckled. "Babe, I love you dearly but you have terrible taste, everyone but you knows it. I still wanna know what Lance did with those damned pants with the naked woman on them so I can burn them."

Joey chuckled. "No worries J, already been taken care of."

"I wondered what happened to those!" Lance swatted his shoulder. "Those were comfortable, Joe!"

"And utterly lacking in taste," Chris said with a chuckle, and then looked over at the couple across the table with a wicked little grin. "Charlie, Mike, you guys have to have an opinion too... Is Josh really a beautiful, sexy man or are we all just nuts?"

Charlie looked up at Mike, knowing that Mike knew how he felt on the subject, and Mike grinned down at him then looked over at Chris. "It’s very safe to say you’re not nuts."

JC blushed and looked down at the table while the other four grinned at him and Justin said, "Ha! No more denying it babe, you are the pretty one."

Charlie chuckled and glanced at his watch, then stood and gave them a wry grin. "Mike and I really ought to get going, we have a 10 am appointment with Doc Jones in the morning, and it’s already after one o’clock. Anything we can do for you guys before we crash?"

Lance shook his head and smiled. "No, we’re fine. We probably won’t be up that early in the morning, but feel free to come over here whenever you like."

Chris gave them a wicked grin. "Yeah, and remember to actually sleep a few hours."

Charlie blushed while Mike gave Chris a grin and said, "I’ll let him get a little sleep, boss, I promise."

"We’ll see you all in the morning," Charlie said as he started towards the door, still blushing, and Mike followed him with a big grin.

Lance chuckled. "G’night guys." The two teenagers left and Lance looked at the four who were still around the table and said, "I don’t know about you guys, but I’m ready for bed. See you in the morning." He walked over to JC’s chair to give him a kiss on the cheek, then grinned at Justin and said, "You’re too tall, Jup, you know that, right?"

Justin chuckled as Chris and Joey rose to go with Lance. "No man," Justin said, grinning, "you’re too short."

Justin lowered his head to let Lance kiss his cheek, and then Lance headed to bed as Chris said "Night guys. Don’t have too much fun." Chris grinned at them and headed across the room after Lance while Joey finished his Dr. Pepper.

Joey tossed his empty can into the trash, chuckling as he saw Chris disappear into the bathroom. "G’night guys," Joey said, "sleep good."

"We will," JC said with a grin, "eventually."

Joey laughed and crossed the room just as Chris reappeared with a smirk and said, "Joe, you oughta look in that box, that Wade is one kinky dude, I swear! There’s all sorts of..." His voice trailed off as they disappeared into their bedroom and closed the door.

Justin chuckled and looked down at JC. "You ready for bed, babe?"

JC stood, moving to stand close to Justin and slip his arms around him with a grin. "Yeah, but I’m not at all sleepy."

Justin put his arms around JC, pulling him close as he leaned in to give him a slow, thorough kiss before he pulled back and grinned at him. "Neither am I."

"Good," JC said with a grin as Justin began to nudge JC backwards towards their bedroom, kissing him along the way.

 

 


	31. Chapter 31

 

~~~~31~~~~

 

Charlie was sound asleep when the phone rang the next morning, making him groan and try to reach it until he realized Mike was laying half on top of him, pinning him down. Mike outweighed him by a goodly bit and there was no way Charlie could make him move, so he was just about to wake Mike up when he heard the phone ring a third time.

Mike growled softly then and shifted as he said, "Ge’ that."

Charlie chuckled and ran a hand lightly over Mike’s back under the covers. "I would if you’d get off me."

Mike groaned, then made an annoyed noise and tossed back the blankets as he rolled away to sit up. He reached answer the phone himself then, sounding surprisingly awake as he pushed his hair back out of his face and said, "Hello?"

Charlie rolled to his side and propped himself up on one elbow, smiling and watching Mike as he pulled the blanket back up and thinking absently that he really should get Mike to cut his hair. Making a statement was one thing – Mike’s hair had been his main rebellion against his parents for years – but Charlie felt it was going just a bit too far when it hung to the lower edge of his shoulder blades. Of course, Charlie loved Mike’s hair just like it was, but a he couldn’t help but think it needed cut anyway.

"This is your seven am wake up call, Mr. Kohl. Would you like me to send someone up with coffee or breakfast?" a polite male voice asked.

"Just a sec," Mike said, then pulled the phone away from his mouth and looked at Charlie. "Do you want some coffee or anything, Char?"

Charlie shook his head. "No love, I’m fine."

Mike gave him a quick smile at the endearment – they seldom used them – and then put the phone back to his ear. "No, thank you, but could you be sure to have someone call us at eight thirty?"

Charlie suddenly reached out to run one finger lightly along Mike’s spine, making Mike shiver and squirm away as Charlie grinned.

"Certainly sir, will that be all?"

"Yes, thank you." Mike hung up, and then turned to crawl back across the bed to Charlie, grinning as he tossed the blankets towards the foot of the bed.

"What are you up to?" Charlie asked with a tolerant grin, letting Mike push him over onto his back and reaching up to stroke Mike’s sides.

Mike grinned and said, "Gettin’ closer to my best friend." He ducked his head and gave Charlie a quick kiss – and a face full of blond hair – and then continued, "So I can get him to," Mike tossed his hair back and then kissed Charlie lingeringly before he added, "let me..." He kissed slowly along Charlie’s jaw to whisper in his ear, "Make love to him..." Mike nibbled Charlie’s earlobe gently and then asked softly, "Think he might go for that?"

Charlie tipped his head sideways a little bit to give Mike better access and stroked Mike’s back as Mike began to kiss his way down Charlie’s neck. "I think he could be persuaded, if you play your cards right."

Mike lifted his head to grin at him. "And how would he like to be persuaded this morning?" he asked, then ducked his head to nibble at Charlie’s chest, making him arch his back and moan slightly before Mike lifted his head to grin wickedly at him again and wait for an answer.

Charlie pulled him down for a slow, hungry kiss and when they parted he grinned up at him and said softly, "Surprise me."

Mike just smirked.

 

 

 

Justin woke up with the vague feeling something was wrong and wondered what it was for over a minute until he realized he was alone. He rolled over to look around the room sleepily, frowning when he saw it was only eight o’clock. He was just sitting up to get out of bed when JC opened the door to their room and stepped in, closing it carefully behind him.

"Where’d y’go?" Justin asked, sounding more than half asleep.

JC turned to him in surprise and quickly crossed to the bed. "I’m sorry, baby, did I wake you? I had to go use the bathroom."

Justin gave him a sleepy smile and said, "You didn’t. C’mere." Justin tossed back the sheet and waited for JC join him.

JC quickly shed the sweats he wore and slid into bed, smiling at Justin. "Baby, if I didn’t wake you then why are you up so early?"

Justin pulled the sheet up over them and snuggled up against JC, putting an arm around him and laying his head on the older man’s shoulder as he mumbled softly, "Rolled over’n my pillow was gone."

JC chuckled and propped his head up a bit with one arm so he could watch Justin while he stroked his back with the other hand. "Your pillow, huh?"

Justin nodded. "Uh hmm. Good pillow... All warm and solid and," he licked JC’s chest, "tastes good too."

JC chuckled again and looked at Justin as he said softly, "Go back to sleep, baby."

Justin snorted and mumbled, "Would if you’d quit talkin’."

JC smiled and was quiet, watching Justin sleep and stroking his back until his hand gradually stilled as he fell asleep too.

 

 

 

Lance was awakened by an insistent need to use the bathroom only to find he’d have to untangle himself from Chris before he could go anywhere. After a few minutes of careful shifting that only made Chris hold on to him tighter – Lance had the fleeting thought Chris was almost as bad as kudzu – he finally gave up and just bodily pushed Chris off of him before he quickly went into the bathroom. He walked back to the bed a couple of minutes later, only half awake and intending to go back to sleep until he saw the clock across the room and he stopped in surprise. It was already after eleven!

"Whaswrong?" Joey asked softly, blinking blearily at Lance and stroking Chris’ back as he curled up against Joey’s chest, making little grumbly noises because he’d been woken up so rudely.

Lance gave Joey a quick smile and walked over to climb back into bed with them, pulling up the blanket over them as he spooned up behind Chris and then leaned past him to kiss Joey. "Nothing sweetheart," Lance said quietly, "I was just surprised how late it is."

Chris spoke quietly then, his voice scratchy with sleep as he said, "I don’t care what time it is, I’m still sleepy so it’s too early to get up."

Joey snorted and nodded, letting his eyes close again as Chris tucked his head in against Joey’s neck.

Lance chuckled and slipped an arm around Chris to rest his hand on the older man’s stomach, settling in comfortably against his back as he said, "Alright, we’ll go back to bed. It’s after eleven though."

Chris stirred slightly and sounded a bit more awake as he said, "You’re kiddin’, right?"

Joey sighed and opened his eyes again to see Lance watching him with a little smile. "No sweetheart, I’m not kidding. It really is after eleven."

Chris rolled backwards slightly against Lance’s chest so he could look at Joey. "I guess that’s why I’m hungry, huh Joe?"

Joey chuckled. "Could have somethin’ to do with it, yeah."

Chris stretched slightly, leaning back even more firmly against Lance as he said, "Well, if it’s that late I guess we oughta get up. We went to bed early though, so why am I still sleepy?"

Lance laughed softly and kissed Chris’ shoulder. "I was just thinking the same thing. I guess going to bed at one _isn_ _’_ _t_ early enough."

Joey rolled away from them to lay flat on his back, the blankets sliding towards the foot of the bed as he stretched and yawned, then said, "Going to bed at one doesn’t count when we didn’t go to sleep until a couple hours later." He rolled back to his side to look at them, resting one arm on his hip as he propped his head up with the other. "I went to use the bathroom just after you two fell asleep, and it was around three then."

Chris made a face. "Still, we tour all the time on five hours sleep, and three to eleven is eight whole hours. I should be wide awake, not having serious doubts about whether or not filling my empty belly is worth getting up."

Joey snorted and rolled over again, this time tossing the blankets back to get out of bed and go use the bathroom. He knew Lance had thought about it long enough now he wasn’t really gonna go back to sleep, so Joey was sure the other two would be in there before long for their morning shower.

Chris watched Joey stand and walk around the bed, then said, "The stupid photographers always want to see JC and Justin, who are both nice to look at I’ll admit, or you who I personally think could give JC a run for his money ‘cause some people don’t like the starving artist look, but they completely ignore Joe-bear most of the time. Why is that?"

Lance smiled and kissed Chris’ shoulder again. "I don’t know, sweetheart. I agree with you." Lance didn’t say he liked looking at Chris just as much because he knew Chris had an even worse self-image than JC did and would just argue with him.

"They’re all just blind fools with _no_ taste," Chris said after a moment, sounding decisive. "That explains those clothes they make us wear too."

Lance chuckled and leaned forward to rub his scratchy chin across the back of Chris’ neck, making the older man squirm and chuckle. Lance nipped the side of Chris’ neck gently then as he slid the hand he’d rested on Chris’ stomach down through the coarse hair below his navel, and Chris moved back slightly against him before Lance suddenly pulled away and got out of bed. "I’m gonna go take a shower, I’m too awake now to sleep."

Chris flopped to his back to look at Lance, who was standing by the bed smirking at him and admiring the view. "You don’t play fair," Chris said, pretending to pout.

Lance grinned at him and replied, "Nope, but I win." He gave Chris a wink and walked slowly towards the bathroom, giving Chris a good long look before he disappeared from view.

Chris looked at the empty doorway a moment and then up at the ceiling, then laughed and sat up abruptly. "Okay, so a shower sounds like fun." He stood and went into the bathroom too, grinning.

 

 

 

"I still can’t believe Doc gave me a _safe sex_ lecture!" Charlie said as they stepped off the elevator, waving distractedly to Scotty and James as they passed them playing cards at a table that had been set up nearby. "He’s known me since I was knee high!" Scott and James waved back, grinning.

Mike grinned and waved at the bodyguards as he continued on down the hall after Charlie. "I thought it was funny. The look on his face when you finally got annoyed and said you wouldn’t be getting your boyfriend pregnant anytime soon was priceless."

The two bodyguards heard that and both laughed, looking up from their card game which really was a bit boring to watch the two teens as Charlie stopped and whirled around to look at Mike.

"It was his own fault!" Charlie said indignantly, "I do _not_ have to worry about accidentally getting someone pregnant, but would he _listen_ to me when I said that?! _Noooo_... He just went on and on and on about birth control pills and condoms and abstinence and—" He made an annoyed growling noise in his throat and then turned to continue down the hall as he said, "Then there was that... _person_ who pulled blood. She was a reject from _beauty school_ , I swear! After she got done with me I was _not_ in the mood to be a good little boy and listen to a lecture. If I’m coming out I may as well do it right, and Doc’s the biggest gossip in town."

Scott and James grinned at each other, thinking the new guys were going to be great entertainment on long bus rides, and went back to playing rummy.

Mike laughed and followed Charlie down the hall again. "Oh you did, no fear. Half the people in the building heard him ask if you were gay I think, and you were not a bit shy about saying yes."

Charlie made a face over his shoulder at him as he unlocked their door. "I still wanna know why he decided I needed that lecture. You’re the tall, handsome blond who looks like he’d get laid all the time and flirts as easy as breathing. I’m just the short red-headed guy with freckles who leaves well enough alone."

Charlie swung the door open and Mike grinned and went inside as he said, "You weren’t at all careful about keeping your robe closed, so I’d say the hickeys probably had something to do with it."

Charlie shut the door and stared at him. "The what?!"

Mike looked surprised, then laughed. "You didn’t notice them when you got dressed?"

Charlie gave him a dirty look. "No, I did _not_ notice them! Just exactly where are these hickeys, and _what_ inspired you to give them to me?"

Mike chuckled and moved closer to put his arms around Charlie, not at all surprised when he just stood there and gave Mike a hard look without reciprocating. "Umm... One’s on your neck and the other is on your thigh. And I dunno why, I just did," the tall blond said after a moment, trying not to grin even though his brown eyes twinkled merrily.

Charlie folded his arms across his chest, incidentally pushing Mike a little further away. "‘I just did’ is _not_ a good enough reason Michael. Try again." Charlie did not look the least bit amused.

"Aww, don’t be mad." Mike ducked his head to kiss Charlie’s cheek and then his jaw before he started down his neck, talking as between kisses. "I just ... I was kissing you ... last night ... and thinking that ... we don’t have to ... hide anymore ... and before I knew it ... you had a hickey ... right ... here." Mike kissed the back of Charlie’s neck just below the hairline, then lifted his head a bit, nuzzling Charlie’s slightly shaggy red hair as he said softly, "I didn’t mean to, really. It just happened." Mike nibbled gently at the skin behind Charlie’s ear then, knowing he usually couldn’t ignore that even if he was mad.

Charlie snorted and held still, ignoring the urge to tip his head to the side. He knew exactly what Mike was doing and wasn’t going to give in that easily. "Okay, I can see one being a heat of the moment kind of thing. What’s your excuse for the other one?"

Mike pulled back to give him a sheepish little smile that usually worked like a charm. "Umm... Stupidity?"

Charlie laughed, unable to help it even though he knew Mike was likely looking so adorable on purpose. "You’re something else, you know that, right?"

Mike grinned at him. "Yeah, you tell me all the time."

Charlie shook his head and chuckled, finally dropping his arms to rest his hands on Mike’s hips as Mike leaned in to kiss him. They parted a few moments later as Charlie chuckled again, and Mike looked at him questioningly.

"Are you sure Doc could see the hickey on my leg?" Charlie asked.

Mike nodded, grinning. "Yeah, the look on his face was pretty funny. That nurse was drawing blood from you, or trying to, and she said something about how pale you were. I looked over just as he looked up, and you had let your robe fall open enough that I could see it, and I don’t know of anything else he might have seen then to make him look like that. It’s pretty obvious. That nurse was right, you have the palest skin."

Charlie made a face. "And exactly where is this hickey? Is it going to make it embarrassing to wear shorts in the near future?"

Mike laughed and slid a hand between them, familiarly stroking high on the inside of Charlie’s right thigh. "Right about there. Your shorts will cover it, I’m sure. I was surprised your boxers didn’t."

Mike’s hand began to roam then and Charlie twisted away with a soft laugh. "Oh no, none of that, the guys should be up soon if they aren’t already and we are not gonna make a bad impression the first day."

Mike grinned and shrugged. "It was worth a try."

Charlie grinned back at him. "Might have worked too, if it weren’t so late." He turned and walked to the connecting door to open it so they could hear when the guys got up, then he walked to their own kitchen to get a glass of water.

Mike followed him, hopping up to sit on the breakfast bar and watching him drink the water before he spoke, grinning. "Y’know, I still can’t hardly believe this. I always figured you’d get into Juliard and that I would get a job or two to support us while you did the whole performing arts student bit. This is like a dream come true, only I never dared to even _dream_ this big."

Charlie turned from the sink to grin back at him. "Isn’t it though? We’ve got the chance of a lifetime, and all because you’re nosy and dragged me over to watch, too."

Mike chuckled. "Hell of a way to get a job."

Charlie just shook his head and grinned as they heard a knock on the door to their room, and he quickly walked over to close the door to the guys’ room and then open the one to the hall.

"Hi!" the short red haired woman at the door said with a bright grin, "You must be Charles, I’m Joanna, Lance’s assistant. I’d shake your hand but..." She shrugged, thinking it was evident she couldn’t because her hands were full, a mail bag slung over one shoulder and bags of laundry hanging from the other hand.

Charlie quickly reached to take the laundry bags as Mike hopped off the breakfast bar to come take the bag of mail. "Come on in. Yeah, I’m Charlie and this is Mike," Mike grinned at her as he reached for the bag and Charlie finished, "nice to meet you."

Joanna surrendered the bags without an argument, following them into the room and watching the two young men with a grin as she idly admired the view. "Wow, not only are you two cute but you’re polite, too. Cool!" She grinned at them. "It’ll be great touring with a couple of nice guys."

Charlie and Mike exchanged a look as they put the bags on the breakfast bar and Mike winked at Charlie, who stifled a grin as Mike turned to hop back up on the breakfast bar. "Thanks," Mike said, giving her a bright grin, "we try. Are the other guys you work with not nice or something? We haven’t met anyone yet except the group and some of the security team..."

Mike trailed off, giving her a questioning look as Charlie moved to sit next to him close enough that their thighs and shoulders were touching, even though there was plenty of room for him to sit further away on the bar. Charlie wanted to see if Joanna would pick up on the body language or if they’d have to tell her they were together. He knew from watching a hundred interviews that the guys sat as close as he and Mike were all the time.

Joanna smiled at them. "Oh no, there just aren’t any guys working as assistants. It’s just me, Melinda – she’s supposed to do the website and help out with Joey and Chris – and two of the makeup girls who help me sometimes, Michelle and Julie. We were all surprised when we heard JC and Justin had hired two local guys. Jive usually has some pretty little slip of a girl working for them." She snorted. "They never last long though, usually they either run off with someone or get tired of the work once they figure out Justin really _does_ love Britney and JC – gorgeous as he is – isn’t looking for more company."

Mike chuckled. "We won’t be running off with the crew or chasing the guys, I promise."

Joanna laughed. "Of course not, but with our luck you guys will hit it off with the girls and we’ll loose assistants _and_ dancers."

Charlie grinned. "Not gonna happen, Joanna. I guess whoever told you the guys hired us didn’t tell you much about us, huh?"

Joanna smiled.. "Well, no, not really, why?"

Mike chuckled again and Charlie grinned at her, patting Mike’s knee. "We’re taken. Thoroughly. And pretty happy about it, too."

Joanna looked disappointed, then concerned as she asked, "That’s gonna be tough on you. How do your girls feel about the fact you’ll be on tour most of the year?"

Mike laughed. "Joanna, there _are_ no girls, Charlie and I have been together forever. I won’t be hitting on any of the dancers – well, except maybe that one cute little redhead – and Charlie here won’t be chasing skirts. We got the job because the guys like us, we work well together, we’re willing to work any and all hours, and we aren’t going to leave to marry some girl."

Joanna blushed, how close they were sitting and the familiar way Charlie’s hand rested on Mike’s leg finally dawning on her as more than friendly. "I bet you think I’m a snoop, and a dense one to boot."

Charlie smiled at her. "Hey, don’t worry about it. People are gonna ask us, we know that, we don’t mind." He looked at Mike then and said, "I do have a question for you though, mister. Which cute redhead do you have your eye on, might I ask?"

Mike grinned at him. "The short one with the dark green eyes and freckles. He reminds me of Seth Green and dances like nobody I’ve ever seen, except possibly JC or Wade."

Charlie looked a little annoyed, wondering who in the world Mike was talking about as Joanna cocked her head at them and said, obviously confused, "None of our dancers look like that, I know. Are you sure he works for us?"

Mike laughed and then turned to grin at her. "Oh yeah, he does, you guys just hired him. His name is Charles."

"Oh you—!" Charlie swatted him, suddenly smiling again. "I thought you really had your eye on somebody!"

Mike grinned and gave Charlie a rather obvious once over. "Oh, but I do. My eyes, and my hands, and my ton—"

"Do not finish that sentence, Michael," Charlie said warningly, and the tall blond shut up, grinning at him.

Joanna grinned. "I can tell it’s gonna be a lot of fun having you two around. I’d bet that you and JC will really hit it off too, you have a _lot_ in common." Charlie and Mike both grinned back at her even though Charlie’s mind was going a mile a minute, wondering if she meant what that sounded like. He was considering playing stupid and asking her what she meant when she suddenly said, "Oh! It might help if I tell you guys why I’m here, huh?"

Charlie chuckled, deciding to let the comment about JC – and that had been the second one, now that he thought about it – pass. "Yeah, a bit. The guys aren’t up yet so they haven’t had time to really tell us what’s expected of us."

Joanna smiled. "Well, knowing JC and Justin you’ll probably wind up with a lot of free time until they realize they actually have assistants again, but I can tell you what I’ve been doing for them and you guys can take it from there, okay?" They both nodded and she went on, "The laundry here is for all of them, they don’t like for us girls to mess with it so we always just give it to them by the bag and they fold it and put it up themselves. There’s also a bag of mail here, mostly fan mail I’m sure but somebody has to go through it and make sure important letters from Jive or Britney or someone didn’t get tossed in there too when the mail people in Orlando bagged it. That’s pretty much all you’ve got to do other than whatever the guys come up with, which is usually exciting stuff like ordering flowers for Britney or surfing the net to find a CD by some obscure group for JC." She chuckled.

Charlie gave her a big grin. "We can handle that I think."

Joanna returned the grin with a quick nod. "Good, I’ll go and let you two get busy, then. When you sort the fan mail, anything that looks like hate mail and the letters addressed to both JC and Justin get tossed, and anything that is from someone the guys would really know – Britney, Lance’s mom, JC’s brother Tyler, people like that – is set aside. The rest just goes back in the bag and next time they get bored they’ll look through it." She grinned and started for the door as she went on, "Oh, and would you let them know that with all the mail they got yesterday, plus this stuff and what Melinda and I will be going through today, they’re gonna have at least a day’s worth of mail sorting to do pretty soon? They really should do it this week sometime. Thanks."

Charlie hopped down off the counter to follow her to the door. "No problem! Thanks for bringing this to us. Hopefully in a day or two we’ll have a chance to figure out where we’re supposed to go to get stuff like this ourselves so you don’t have to bring it up."

Joanna laughed. "That’d be nice! Our mice have never really had a competent assistant, I’ve always had to do half their job and mine too. Jive is a great place to work for, but JC and Justin have had more barely legal airhead girls assigned to them than any five other people in the business, I swear."

Charlie chuckled. "Well, no worries on that anymore, Joanna. We’ll be doing our jobs even if neither of us are legal yet and Mike’s a bit of an airhead."

"Hey, I heard that!" Mike called.

"You were supposed to!" Charlie called back, making Joanna laugh.

"I’ll see you guys later," she said, "Have fun."

Joanna waved as she went out the door and Charlie locked it behind her before he turned to walk over and stand in front of where Mike sat on the bar. "So, are you gonna get started sorting mail or what?"

Mike chuckled and reached to pull him closer. "I’d rather fold laundry. You can do the mail."

Charlie made a face as he slid his hands around Mike’s waist. "Okay, but if you get done first you have to help me."

Mike leaned down to give Charlie a kiss before he grinned at him and said, "Deal."

Charlie smiled and gave him a quick squeeze and then pulled away to grab one of the bags of mail. He carried it over to the couch to start sorting it, thinking about what Joanna had said. Lance had said nobody knew about JC and Justin, and JC had said nobody knew about Lance, Joey, and Chris, but Joanna had hinted that she knew JC at least wasn’t straight.

Charlie opened the bag of mail and began quickly sorting it into piles, still thinking, and Mike watched him another minute or two before he hopped off the breakfast bar and walked over to open the door to the guys room again. Mike returned to the table and began folding laundry then, sorting it into neat piles by what type of clothing it was since he had no clue who wore what.

 

 


	32. Chapter 32

 

~~~~32~~~~

 

JC woke up slowly, smiling as he recalled the dream he’d been having, one so realistic he could almost still feel Justin kissing his back and—

He realized he _could_ feel Justin kissing his shoulder and running a hand over his ass, which made JC wonder exactly how much of the rest of the dream had happened too. It had been a _really_ good dream.

JC smiled a little wider and laid there, trying to resist the urge to moan as Justin stroked his body and kissed his way down to the small of his back, and he held still for a couple of minutes longer before a soft moan slipped out. He decided he’d had enough of just letting Justin explore then and stretched slightly as he turned his head to look over his shoulder at Justin. "Baby? What are you doing?"

Justin glanced up quickly, grinning as he kissed the cheek of JC’s ass before he lifted his head, his right hand still resting high on the inside of JC’s thigh. "Waking up the man I love."

JC chuckled and rolled to his side so he could see Justin better, reaching for him. "Not that I’m complaining or anything, cause I’m definitely not, but why?"

Justin moved up the bed to kiss JC, taking his time and smiling into the kiss when JC rolled to his back and pulled him closer. They parted eventually and Justin grinned down at JC as he said, "Cause you were beautiful and all laid out like you were just waiting for me to take advantage of you, so I did."

JC chuckled again and reached up to brush an errant curl off Justin’s forehead. "I have to admit it’s a nice way to wake up."

Justin grinned and said, "I can arrange that kind of wakeup call anytime you like, babe."

JC smirked. "How about now, while I’m awake to enjoy it?"

Justin ducked his head to kiss JC quickly then gave him a dazzling grin as he said, "It’ll be my pleasure."

 

 

 

Lance left his room just after noon, chuckling and wondering if Chris would ever truly grow up. The admittedly hyper thirty year old was at that moment enthusiastically bouncing on the bed in nothing but Lance’s jeans, ‘dancing’ to a Ramones video while Joey watched him from a safe distance, grinning.

Chris had been bouncing off the walls for thirty minutes, so much so that Lance was beginning to wonder if he had snuck a candy bar or even two at some point this morning. Chris had finally settled on making it difficult for Joey and Lance to get dressed and went from bugging one of them to the other until Lance, in a fit of desperate inspiration, suggested he watch TV instead of unbuttoning Lance’s jeans every time Lance tried to put on a shirt.

Lance had hopes of Chris happily flopping down on the bed to yell advice at classic cartoons – Boomerang was a wonderful Chris-sitter in Lance’s opinion – but instead Chris flipped through the channels and found out that the hotel got VH1 Classic, which was doing a special marathon of early punk music. Chris had been bouncing to ‘real music!’ ever since, first around the room and then on the bed, and when Lance walked out he was seriously hoping they wouldn’t wind up paying for any damages to the room by the time Chris got it out of his system.

Lance heard noises from JC and Justin’s room as he walked by and grinned as he recognized Justin’s laugh followed by a giggle from JC that made him wonder what they were doing. Yesterday morning he would have assumed Justin was tickling JC again or something similarly innocent and dismissed it, but after the conversation the night before he was much more curious. JC had pretty much proven that he might be shy but he definitely wasn’t a prude, and Justin had always been the adventurous type so there was no telling what was going on between them. Lance didn’t pause on his way to the kitchen to get a Dr. Pepper though – he, Chris and Joey got loud too, and JC or Justin listening at the door could get weird so he wouldn’t do it to them – and had just opened a can when he noticed that the connecting door to the other room was open.

Lance shoved off from his spot leaning against the counter and walked over to stick his head into the next room, grinning as he called softly, "Knock, knock."

Charlie waved from the couch as Mike looked up from the socks he was almost through sorting into pairs. "Mornin’, come on in," Mike said with a big grin, "Sleep good?"

Lance chuckled and nodded as he walked in. "Yeah, we did. Too good really, since we slept late again."

Charlie laughed. "Boss, you’ve been touring for months, you’re _supposed_ to sleep late on your week off."

Lance grinned at him. "Well, yeah, I guess, but it’s still kinda odd to wake up and the day be half gone."

"It is not Scoop, the day’s just gettin’ started good!" JC said happily from the door behind him, making Lance turn in surprise.

"G’mornin’, Josh... You look chipper, did you sleep well?" Lance asked, grinning.

JC gave him a smug grin and walked in to stand by Lance. "When we finally went to sleep, yeah. Woke up better though."

Lance laughed at that as Mike and Charlie exchanged grins, thinking they could say pretty much the same thing as Mike looked down and started sorting the last few socks.

Justin walked up behind JC then and slipped his arms around him as he handed him an open Mountain Dew and said, "Mornin’ everyone." He saw the piles of laundry on the table by Mike then and said, "Hey man, I dunno what the girls told you but you don’t have to do that. We usually put our clothes up ourselves."

Mike grinned. "Joanna said you guys usually do it but I don’t mind, it’s a whole lot better than sorting mail."

Charlie snorted. "Which is of course why I’m over here sorting the mail."

Lance chuckled as JC and Justin both grinned at Charlie.

Joey walked in with a wave a moment later as Lance said, "Really though, I usually handle the laundry, Mike. You don’t need to."

"Babe, let him help," Joey said with a chuckle as he slung an arm around Lance’s shoulders and took his Dr. Pepper. "That’s why we hired them, remember? You’ve been working too hard and you promised us you’d slow down. Letting Mike fold the laundry won’t kill you."

Lance smiled wryly at Joey and watched him take a drink, then looked at Mike. "Are you sure you don’t mind?"

Mike grinned and folded the last pair of socks. "I’m sure boss, this is easy after doing the laundry for a whole football team. I’m six foot and pretty good at running the ball, but I wouldn’t even try out, and around here that’s almost as bad as being gay. Nobody cared that coach decided I was the designated laundry boy. Compared to spending an hour every morning washing dirty socks and jock straps, this is a treat!" Charlie chuckled, remembering the hundreds of times he’d listened to Mike complain about the stinky gym clothes he had to wash every morning.

"Dude, that’s gross," Joey said, wrinkling his nose. "I wasn’t on a team in high school, but when I was in junior high we all had to carry our clothes home to wash them. My ma even made me do mine myself, she said it was part of the price of being a jock."

Justin laughed at that as Mike snorted and said, "I wish it was that way here but it’s not. Our football and basketball teams are more than a little pampered."

Lance chuckled. "They were in Mississippi too, and I did more than one stint as laundry boy myself." He watched as Mike pushed the socks into a pile and then asked again, "Are you sure you don’t mind, Mike?"

Mike chuckled and hopped up to sit on the breakfast bar between a stack of t-shirts and the socks. "Yes, I’m sure. Folding clean laundry doesn’t bother me a bit, I promise. Give me a few weeks to see who wears what and I’ll even be able to sort most of it for you, too."

Lance smiled at him. "Thanks, I appreciate it. Though seeing who wears what won’t help you much with sorting things, Chris had a pair of my jeans on when I left and there’s no telling who’s t-shirt he’ll wind up with."

"Charlie used to do that with my clothes – see something he liked and borrow it – but I kinda outgrew it," Mike said with a grin.

Charlie made a face and said, "Oh ha ha," making the others laugh. It was obvious clothes that fit Mike had no prayer of fitting him. The tall blond was around five inches taller than Charlie and much wider through the shoulders, outweighing him by a good fifty pounds even though he wasn’t at all overweight.

"I’m not gonna be that lucky," Lance said after a moment, still chuckling. "Chris isn’t going to outgrow my clothes, or J—"

"Joshua’s!" Chris crowed from the doorway.

Lance laughed and started to turn, shaking his head slightly as he said, "Chris, you can’t wear—" He broke off then and Mike and Charlie both laughed as he saw Chris was standing in the doorway wearing the surfer t-shirt JC had gotten the day before. JC had bought the shirt big enough that Joey could wear it comfortably, so it swallowed JC whole and was too big even for Chris. Paired with the jeans Chris had snitched from Lance’s bag – also too big since Lance liked loose clothes – he looked like he was dressing up in his older brother’s clothes or something.

Joey chuckled. "Dude, that is just so you."

"Thanks, Joe-bear." Chris beamed at him and walked over to kiss Joey’s cheek and take the can Joey was holding.

Charlie noticed then that the five of them were standing in enough of an arc that they could all see each other and wondered if they did it on purpose or out of habit. Other than the fact Justin was standing with his arms around JC they could have been about to do TRL or something similar.

Justin nodded, grinning as JC said, "Oh yeah man, it looks great on you. Show Mike and Charlie the back." JC gave him a big crinkly-eyed grin and Chris laughed, stepping forward before he turned so Mike and Charlie could see the back of his shirt while he took a drink.

"I love it!" Mike said, laughing. "Where in the world did you find that?"

"Yeah, that’s a good one," Charlie agreed, grinning.

Chris moved to stand facing them again, his shoulder brushing Joey’s as he looked expectantly at JC, who grinned at Mike and said, "I got it yesterday at the Wal-Mart down the road. I saw it while Joe and I were headed to the electronics department and I just had to buy it, I knew we’d all wear it. Well, except maybe Scoop, he has different taste than we do."

Lance said dryly, "That’s for sure," making Charlie and Mike laugh again.

Chris drained the last of the Dr. Pepper he’d snitched from Joey, who’d taken it from Lance, and then grinned past Joey at Lance and asked, "So what’s for breakfast, babe? I’m starving."

Lance snorted. "You can read and use a telephone." The others laughed at the shocked look on Chris’ face, then Lance grinned and said, "I was figuring to eat a slice of that cheesecake Joe’s mom sent, so I suppose you could have some of it."

"Or of the quiche," Joey said with a grin. "She sent us two."

Lance looked surprised as JC exclaimed, "There’s quiche and nobody told me? Forget room service and even the _cheesecake_ man, Momma Fatone makes the best quiche in the _world_!" JC turned to go back into the other suite, heading for the kitchen with Justin, Chris, and Joey right on his heels.

Lance chuckled and looked at Mike and Charlie. "Would you guys like to join us? Joe’s mom always sends enough food to feed an army, or you could just come have a drink and hang out."

Mike hopped off the breakfast bar as Charlie stood, smiling, and said, "Thanks, we’d like that."

Mike nodded. "Yeah, I’m sure there’s a lot about us you guys would like to know, and I know I want to know more about y’all."

Lance grinned at them over his shoulder as he walked into the other suite and said, "Ask anything you want, Mike. Even if we don’t answer, I promise we won’t get upset."

Charlie grinned as he and Mike followed Lance towards the breakfast bar. "That’s good, Mike’s not too terribly bright sometimes and there’s no telling what he’ll ask."

Joey laughed, taking a seat at the table. "Sounds like Critter."

Lance chuckled, nodding. “Yep.”

Chris lifted his head to look at them over the refrigerator door as he exclaimed indignantly, "Hey!"

Justin and JC exchanged a grin as JC stuck a tupperware dish of quiche in the microwave, then Justin started digging out silverware for everyone.

Joey just grinned at Chris and didn’t say anything, making Lance chuckle again as he moved over to the fridge to lean past Chris’ back to get another drink.

"Joe, quit picking on Chris," Lance said as he turned back towards the table with a can of Dr. Pepper, "he can’t help it he’s nosy." Chris made an annoyed noise and grabbed Lance’s hand to turn him back towards him, making Lance’s eyebrows go up as he gave him a tolerant smile and asked, "Did you need something sweetheart?"

Chris snorted and then nodded. "Yup. For picking on me you have to give me a kiss."

Lance grinned and stepped closer, leaning in to give Chris a rather thorough kiss, finally pulling away a minute or two later to give Chris a smug grin. "That good enough?" Chris blinked a couple of times and then nodded, and Lance gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Good. Now, find the cheesecake, okay?" Chris nodded wordlessly again and turned back to the fridge as Lance smirked and walked over to stand by Joey.

"You’re good," Joey said with a grin. "He doesn’t know what hit him."

Lance took a drink of his Dr. Pepper, then grinned at Joey and said, "Of course I’m good, I’ve had lots of practice keeping you guys in line. Being able to kiss him just makes it easier."

Justin laughed, putting silverware and paper plates on the table and then sitting down. "And we all know how Lance puts himself in practicing."

Lance blushed and moved over to sit between Joey and Justin as Joey, JC, and Chris all laughed. Lance was notorious for insisting they practice even when they didn’t precisely have to, and they’d all complained about it at one time or another, even though they knew it was a good idea.

After a moment Lance looked over at Mike and Charlie, changing the subject as he smiled at them and asked, "Aren’t you two gonna sit down?"

Mike grinned and nodded. "Yeah, I’ll be right back." Charlie looked surprised as Mike left the room but moved to take a seat on the living room side of the table, leaving an empty seat by Joey for Chris as Chris finally carried the cheesecake to the table and sat down.

The microwave binged then and JC was carrying the quiche to the table just as Mike reappeared in the doorway with a chair in each hand, carrying them easily. JC put the quiche on the table and grinned at Mike as he took one of the chairs and said, "Hey thanks, I was about to go get one."

Mike grinned back at him. "No problem." He carried his chair over to put it on the far side of Charlie’s so that they were sitting around the table with Mike, Charlie, and Chris along the side in the living room, Joey on the end and Lance, Justin and JC on the kitchen side of the low-slung bar.

It wasn’t long before everyone had a slice of either quiche or cheesecake in front of them and they were all eating. "So, what were you guys planning after high school before we stumbled into town and flipped your lives upside down? College?" Lance asked between bites of cheesecake.

Mike nodded, swallowing before he replied, "For Charlie, yeah, but my grades aren’t high enough to get a decent scholarship. I was planning to get a job, probably data entry or something like that, and help Charlie through school. He was accepted to go into Juliard, on scholarship." Mike gave Charlie a big smile, more than a little proud of him.

The guys all looked at Charlie in surprise as Chris said, "Wow, Juliard only takes serious talent. I wasn’t good enough to get in, I tried."

Charlie turned red. "It wasn’t a sure thing yet, they were waiting on my test scores and stuff after graduation. I was on the short list for next year, though." Charlie looked a little proud at that, his blush fading as he went on, "It was supposed to be a full scholarship if I kept my grades up."

Mike snorted, smiling at him. "Like there’s a chance you wouldn’t have, you breeze through most everything you were taking this year."

Charlie grinned. "Hey, everyone who uses their head saves their easiest stuff for senior year."

Mike stuck his tongue out at Charlie as Lance chuckled and said, "I put off calculus and trig until my senior year, and then had to take both at once while we were on tour in Europe."

Mike gave Lance a wry grin. "I cleared out my required math last year, but this year I had speech and English lit both at once and I swear, in the last few months I’ve had to write more stupid papers... Do I _look_ like I care about how the fashion industry affects today’s teenager?" He made a disgusted noise, and then went on. "But my other classes mostly made up for it, CAD and programming were lots of fun."

Mike grinned and took another bite of his cheesecake while Charlie chuckled and said, "You and computers. As if your grades weren’t enough evidence, getting my old pile of junk on the net again after it melted down pretty much proved you don’t need those classes. I don’t know why you took them as electives."

Mike swallowed quickly and grinned. "They’re fun! I’d much rather spend the day pecking away at a keyboard than I would sit in some stupid Ag class."

Lance grinned. "Would you happen to want another job to add to your ever-growing list, one working on a computer?"

Mike looked surprised as he chewed his last mouthful of quiche, and then finally said, "Depends on the job." He grinned. "I’m pretty good with them, but I’m not the best by far. What do you need done?"

"Mostly just updating a couple of websites and doing email and some occasional online research I don’t have time for. Probably would never be more than an hour or so at a time, a few times a week. Think you might be interested?" Lance finished his late bite of cheesecake as he waited for an answer, smiling at Mike and hoping he’d be willing to do the job. Melinda sure wasn’t getting it done, and she was the one Jive had hired just for that reason.

Mike thought only a moment before he grinned and nodded. "Sure, why not? I can usually figure out Java and HTML, so keeping up a web page won’t be too hard."

Charlie grinned at Lance. "He’s being modest. He’s pretty good at computer graphics and I’ve seen him write whole pages of HTML just off the top of his head that I’d need a manual and two tutors to figure out."

"Sounds like just what I need. The FreeLance website is abysmal, and the official group site is hopelessly behind. Melinda is supposed to update it, but she’s really not that good at it and doesn’t do it often enough," Lance said with a wry grin. "I still think Jive hired her for her looks."

Mike and Charlie both laughed at that, and then Mike said, "I can handle updating both of those, no problem. The FreeLance site will be easy, it just needs a few tweaks and a better interface."

Lance raised his eyebrows, wondering if it could really be as easy as Mike made it sound. "Care to show me what you have in mind? I’ve got my laptop, and there’s a pretty nice system on the desk over there..."

Mike grinned and stood up. "Oh yeah, sounds like fun. It’ll probably be better to show you on the system here in the room though, if it’ll let me into a HTML editor. It’ll be easier to see on a bigger screen."

Lance grinned back and rose too, gesturing towards the desk by the balcony door. "Have at it."

Joey and Chris exchanged a wry grin, then Chris looked at Charlie and said, "Those two will be knee deep in that computer for hours knowing Lance, he loves to talk computers and none of us are any good at it."

Charlie chuckled and nodded. "Mike’s the same way, he can spend hours working on one and be perfectly happy. Now he’ll have a good excuse."

Joey, Chris, and Justin laughed, and then JC said, "Not to change the subject or anything, but I’m still kind of in awe that you were going to _Juliard_. What were you planning to study?"

Charlie smiled, trying to ignore the fact he was blushing at the idea of JC being in awe of him. "Well, I wanted to take some music classes – I can play the piano but I’d like to learn the guitar – but mostly I planned to take modern dance and some ballet to improve my balance."

JC nodded. "Ballet is good for that, I took lessons for about six months when I first got on MMC because I was such a klutz. I think yoga would take care of any problems you have though – you are _so_ not a klutz! – and I can show you the basics if you want to try it." JC smiled at him, and then went on, "Justin and I can even teach you the guitar, if you want. We both play a bit."

"A bit?!" Chris repeated, laughing incredulously. "You two could easily make a living working sessions, you can play just about everything." Chris looked at Charlie and added, "Me, I can play five or six chords on a guitar and that’s it, and Joe here is about twice as good as I am, but give Justin or JC a guitar and they can play rings around us both. They both play by ear and instinct, not sheet music like us normal people have to, so they can do a passable version of almost anything they’ve heard before. And I’m not _even_ going to talk about JC and a piano! It’s annoying sometimes how perfect Josh is."

JC blushed at that but he grinned, more than a little proud that Chris thought that.

Charlie grinned at the way Chris’ obvious enthusiasm for JC’s skill totally went at odds with his ‘complaint’. "Mike’s like that learning lyrics, he’ll hear a song on the radio once and know every word."

Joey, JC, and Chris all pointed at Justin, who said indignantly, "What?! Can I help it if I remember songs easy? At least I don’t learn choreography by _osmosis_ like Josh."

JC grinned at him. "Choreography is _easy,_ baby. I keep telling you that all you have to do is watch and then replay it in your head."

Chris snorted. "Not everyone has a weird memory like you do, Josh. Some of us remember to eat and have to learn to dance the hard way, one step at a time."

Joey nodded, grinning, as Charlie chuckled and asked, "How often do you have to learn new routines?"

Chris grinned at Charlie. "Usually only at the beginning of a tour unless we have to do something special for an awards show or TRL or something. We bitch about it, but once we’re a week or so into the tour we’re not doing much in the way of rehearsals anymore, we just coast and play and enjoy the ride."

JC nodded, smiling. "It’s really a lot of fun touring, even if it is hard work. Just about every night we move on to a new city, but if we’re lucky we get a few hours to explore or go clubbing or something once or twice a week."

"It must be hard to always be so busy," Charlie said. "I know I’ve seen your schedule sometimes will have you doing a concert and traveling overnight to do another show almost as soon as you get there. How do you do it?"

Justin laughed. "We sleep on the bus. A lot. Like, most of the sleep we get is bus-sleep."

JC nodded, grinning. "Yeah, I get so used to it after touring a while that I can’t sleep _off_ the bus because I’m so used to the road noise and hearing the others breathe. I’ve had trouble sleeping anywhere else most of this tour and the last one, and even some of the break between, so I’ve spent a lot of nights up watching music videos or writing."

Justin, Joey, and Chris all looked surprised as Chris asked, "Why didn’t you say anything?"

JC shrugged and smiled. "No reason to, there wasn’t anything you could do about it. I tried taking some sleeping pills Yolanda got for me, but they didn’t really help so I just gave up and found something to do if I couldn’t sleep."

"You’ve been sleeping pretty good the last few nights and we’ve been off the bus," Justin said, looking a bit confused.

JC chuckled and patted Justin’s thigh. "That’s your fault, baby. Besides the fact it’s so nice to just be with you, you’ve got a habit of tiring me out enough I could sleep standing up. After a midnight snack though, I swear I’ve been hungrier the last few days than I have _ever_ been."

Joey and Chris laughed as Justin grinned at JC and said, "And with your metabolism you can never eat too much or get enough sleep, so I’ll have to work hard to keep you hungry and sleepy. That’s gonna be fun."

Charlie chuckled at the look on JC’s face and Chris and Joey exchanged grins.

JC looked surprised for a moment, then suddenly laughed. "You won’t have to work at it, baby. All you have to do is let me get you behind a locking door."

Justin laughed and was about to say something else when they heard a knock at the door. He looked at Joey and Chris as he stood up, asking, "Are we expecting anyone?"

They both shook their heads no as Lance called from the other side of the room, "It’s probably one of the girls. If it’s something from Meredith, we don’t want any."

Justin laughed and went to the door, opening it to see Joanna standing there with her cellphone to her ear.

"Yes ma’am, he just answered the door," Joanna said, grinning at Justin. "Here you go." Joanna held the phone out to Justin, who looked lost and took it as he started back into the room, waving for Joanna to follow him.

"Hello?" Justin said a little hesitantly, "Can I help you?"

"Yes, you can! Where are you boys’ cell phones and why aren’t you answering them?" his mother asked, sounding a little perturbed.

Justin laughed, brightening as he walked into the kitchen to lean against the counter, gesturing for Joanna to take the empty chair by JC. "Hey momma! I left mine on the bus, and Josh lost his again, it’s probably under the couch on the bus or something. Lance turned his off because Meredith wouldn’t leave him alone, and I have no clue where Joey’s is, but Chris’ is here in the room, I know. We just used it last night, it ought to be working fine."

Lynn snorted. "Well, I’ve called every one of you boys’ phones this morning and gotten voice mail on everyone’s except Lance, his box is full. Have Chris check his phone."

Justin looked over at Chris and asked, "Chris, where’s your cell?"

Chris shrugged. "I dunno, Scoop had it."

Justin called, "Lance? Where’s Chris’ cell?"

Lance looked up from the computer across the room and looked thoughtful, then said, "I left it by the bed I think, why?"

"Mom tried calling us this morning and she got his voice mail," Justin answered.

Lance frowned and started for his room. "It should have rung through, I don’t have it turned off or anything..." He disappeared into his room.

"Lance is gonna go see what the deal is, momma. What did you need?" Justin asked.

"Lynne called me this morning to ask how I felt about my boy finally settling down and I had no clue what she was talking about. When did you plan to tell me you and Josh got together, and _why_ did Brit and her mother get to know first?" Lynn asked, sounding a little put out.

Justin turned red and looked at the ground. "Momma, I was going to tell you, really, we’ve just been so busy I and I didn’t have my phone, and—"

"And you were kissing Joshua every free second you had instead of calling your momma," Lynn said with a snort. "How are you two doing? Everything okay?" she asked then, sounding closer to normal.

Justin smiled, hoping she wasn’t going to give him any more trouble over it. "We’re doing great momma, I—" Justin remembered Joanna was sitting a few feet away listening attentively then and broke off, glad to see Lance walking across the room looking sheepish to give him an excuse for his obvious distraction.

"The battery was dead," Lance said. "I put the extra one out of my bag in it though, so it’s working again now. Tell Lynn I’m sorry, I should have remembered to charge it." Lance set Chris’ cell on the table and watched as Justin spoke to his mother again.

Justin relayed the message and added, "Why don’t I give this phone back and you call me back on Chris’? I’m sure Joanna has a lot to do besides sitting here waiting while we talk."

"And if you give it back and send her on her way you can talk without watching what you say, and I can talk to Joshua, right?" Lynn said, sounding amused.

"Yes ma’am," Justin answered, grinning.

"All right, I’ll hang up and call Chris’ phone in five minutes, okay?"

"Yeah momma, that’d be great. Talk to you then. Love you," Justin said, smiling.

"Love you too, talk to you soon," Lynn said, and then hung up.

Justin flipped the phone closed and walked over to hand it to Joanna as he smiled at her. "Was that all you needed, Jo?"

The petite red-head stood, smiling and starting towards the door. "That and I was about to call up here and tell you five that you need to get anything you’ll want this week off the buses by four o’clock. Andy and the guys are driving home tonight, and that’s when they’re leaving."

Lance smiled. "We’ll go down in a bit and get our stuff, thanks."

Joanna smiled at him. "Anytime. Bye guys... Behave." Joanna waved and left, and Lance walked back over to Mike to lean over Mike’s shoulder and see what he’d done while he was gone.

JC waited a moment and then looked at Justin and asked, "Baby, what’d mom want?"

Chris and Joey exchanged a grin at that – JC had called Justin’s mother ‘mom’ for years – and then looked expectantly at Justin. Charlie was slightly confused by the fact they were both calling whoever Justin had spoken to mom, but he thought it probably was Justin’s mom since JC had said his family wanted nothing to do with him.

Justin grinned and walked over to the table to start putting the food away. "Brit told her mother about us and Lynne immediately decided to talk to momma about it, but I hadn’t told her anything yet. She’s a little annoyed." Justin gave JC a wry grin and walked over to put the two leftover pieces of cheesecake and the rest of the quiche in the fridge.

JC chuckled and watched Justin putting the containers up. "I’m surprised she didn’t give me a piece of her mind."

Justin looked up with a grin as he closed the fridge. "She’s not done yet, babe. She’s gonna call back on Chris’ cell in a few minutes and wants to talk to you."

 


	33. Chapter 33

 

~~~~33~~~~

 

Chris and Joey both snickered at the look on JC’s face as JC asked, "Umm... Are you _sure_ mom’s gonna be okay with us, baby?"

Charlie looked from JC to Justin, remembering what JC had said about how his mother took finding out he was gay, but he was reassured when Justin grinned and walked over to stand leaning against the table close to JC, facing him.

"Josh, sweetheart, she’s known I loved you for years, since we were _mice_." Justin reached to take JC’s hand, smiling as he went on, "She’s gonna be happy for us, I know it." Justin leaned down to kiss JC lingeringly, finally pulling back to give him a soft smile. "Momma loves you almost as much as I do, and I love you more than anything."

JC smiled up at him, his blue eyes bright with love. "I feel the same way about you."

Charlie watched JC pull Justin down for another kiss, thinking how good they looked together, and then blushed slightly and looked over towards Chris and Joey to see them smiling at each other. Charlie looked across the room then to see Mike and Lance both watching them too and grinning, and he had to smile.

After a moment Lance started across the room towards Joey and Chris, and Mike looked at Charlie and mouthed, "Love you."

Charlie grinned and mouthed back, "I love you too."

Lance moved to stand behind Joey and Chris, resting one hand on the back of Chris’ neck and the other on Joey’s shoulder just as JC and Justin finally parted again.

"Everyone’s staring at us," JC said with a little smile, looking up into Justin’s eyes.

Justin grinned back. "People stare at us all the time, babe. Why should today be different?"

Joey and Chris chuckled as Lance said, "Of course we’re staring, you two look great together."

Justin looked up finally then, giving Lance a grin. "What, you’re gonna include me this time, it’s not just Josh you’re admiring?"

Mike crossed the room to go sit back down by Charlie, giving him a quick grin before they both went back to watching the guys. The privilege of being allowed to see them together, just being themselves, was something Mike and Charlie both truly appreciated. They had hidden that they were in love for years and knew exactly how much trust was involved in giving someone that much power over you.

Lance smiled at Justin, amused. "Josh is always a sight to see, but put him near _you_ and he glows. Nothing else could make him as beautiful as his love for you."

Justin and JC both blushed, making Joey grin as Chris nodded and said, "Yeah, and the same goes for you, Justin. You’re a good-looking kid, we all know that, but when you two are together it’s a whole different thing. Alone you’ve got this whole sweet boy who just grew up enough to get all buff and sexy thing going on – hey, I can admit it – but put you with JC and you’re suddenly right on the edge of beautiful. It’s really cool to see how you both just sort of bloom when you get together."

Justin looked at JC, who was looking at their still-linked hands and blushing, and then Justin smiled and said softly, "That’s what it feels like too, like my whole world just opens up every time he walks into the room."

JC looked up quickly, surprised, and gave Justin a bright, happy smile, opening his mouth to say something just as the cell phone laying on the table in front of him buzzed, rattling against the table. JC closed his mouth quickly, then grinned as it buzzed the second time and said, "You better get that, baby."

Justin grinned back at him and picked up the phone, flipping it open and then putting it to his ear as he said, "Hi Momma!"

Lynn chuckled. "Hello, sweetheart. Can I talk to Josh now?"

"Sure Momma, he’s right here." Justin grinned and said, "Here babe." He offered JC the phone, making JC’s eyes widen a bit before he took it and put it to his ear.

"Y-yes ma’am?" JC asked hesitantly.

"Joshua, why do you sound like you expect me to bite your head off?" Lynn asked, amused.

"Umm... Maybe because I kind of do?" JC answered, smiling slightly because she didn’t sound upset but still a little hesitant.

Lynn laughed. "And why exactly would I do that?"

"Because I’ve corrupted your sweet, innocent little boy?" JC asked, finally really smiling as how happy Lynn sounded sank in.

Chris and Joey exchanged a grin, wondering what the other side of the conversation sounded like.

Lynn giggled. "Sweetheart, _you_ haven’t corrupted him. He’s spent way too much time with Brit for you to do that." JC laughed and she went on, "I needed to talk to you because I know you haven’t had an easy time of it. Brit and I had a long talk this morning after I spoke to her mother, and I don’t want you to worry for a minute that I’m going to be upset with you. You’ve made letting Justin travel all over the world a lot easier for me. I knew you were always there watching over him and that you would be there for him no matter what, and you’ve never abused my trust. I wanted to tell you myself that I couldn’t ask for a better person to love my boy than you, Joshua, not only because Justin loves you but also because you’re one of the sweetest, most loyal people I have ever had the pleasure to know. I couldn’t be happier for you, and for him."

JC smiled as he said softly, "Thank you, Lynn. I can’t put into words how much it means to me that you feel that way."

"Since when am I Lynn to you, Joshua Scott?" Lynn asked, mock-angry.

JC chuckled. "Sorry, Mom."

Justin grinned at that, sure his mother had just scolded JC for calling her Lynn.

"That’s better. I know I don’t have to ask you to take care of him for me, Josh, you’ve done that almost half his life now, but I would like to ask something of you..."

Lynn paused and JC said immediately, "Anything."

"Be happy together, okay?" Lynn asked.

JC smiled and said, "We will, Mom, I promise."

"Can I talk to him again?" Lynn asked.

"Sure, here he is. Love you."

"I love you too, Josh. Be good," Lynn said.

"I will, Mom. Bye." JC offered the phone to Justin with a smile. "Here, baby, she wants to talk to you again."

Justin grinned and took the phone. "Yeah M, whatcha need?" he asked as soon as he had the phone to his ear.

Lynn chuckled at how happy her son sounded. "I just wanted to say that I know you’re on cloud nine right now sweetheart, but remember to watch yourselves in public, okay?"

Justin grinned, nodding. "We will, Momma, but if we forget Scoop is keeping an eye on us too."

Lance chuckled as Joey and Chris exchanged a grin, sure Lynn had just told Justin not to out himself accidentally.

"That’s good, Lance should be able to keep you out of trouble if anyone can." She chuckled again, then went on, "I’ll let you go, sweetheart. I’m sure that you boys have plans for the afternoon. Have fun," Lynn said.

"We will, Momma. I love you. Give everyone a hug for me."

"I will, we love you too, Justin. Give Josh a hug for me and give the guys my love, okay?" Lynn asked.

Justin grinned and nodded. "I will, Momma. Bye."

"Bye." Lynn chuckled and then hung up.

Justin flipped the cell phone closed to put it back on the table beside him as he looked over at Joey, Lance, and Chris. "Momma says to tell y’all she loves you." He turned towards JC and reached for his hands, pulling JC to his feet and grinning as he said, "And I’m supposed to give you a hug for her." Justin trailed off, letting go of JC’s hands to slip his arms around the older man and pull him in close as he went on, "But the kiss is from me." He gave JC a quick grin and then kissed him.

Lance looked at Joey and Chris, smiling. "So what are we gonna do today?"

Joey looked up at Lance and grinned as Chris said, "You promised us a shopping trip, remember?"

Lance laughed. "Yeah, I remember. You want to do that today?"

Chris and Joey both nodded, then Lance looked over at JC and Justin to see they both were still completely absorbed in kissing. Lance watched with a grin as Justin’s hands roamed for a long moment before Chris said, "Hey, guys, come up for air a sec!" Justin lifted one hand from JC’s ass to flip Chris off, making Mike laugh as Chris said indignantly, "First it was JC and now the Infant! What is the deal with those two giving me the bird while they make out?!"

JC pulled away from Justin, chuckling. "Baby, be nice."

Justin made a face at him and tightened his arms around JC to keep him from moving further away. "I don’t wanna be nice, I wanna kiss you."

Justin leaned forward again to do just that and JC dodged as best he could considering Justin was holding him, giggling and squirming when Justin ducked his head to lick the side of JC’s neck instead. "Baby, quit, you can kiss me in a minute."

Justin picked his head up to grin at him. "Promise?"

JC snorted, grinning. "Yes, I promise. Now be good, okay?"

Justin nodded and loosened his hold on JC to let him turn and look at the others before Justin tightened his hold again to pull JC firmly back against him.

"What did you need?" JC asked, still grinning as he leaned back comfortably against Justin’s chest.

"I know I was never that horny," Chris grumbled, making Lance and Mike laugh.

"No, Critter, you were much worse," Joey said with a little smirk.

Chris looked shocked. "Joseph, how dare you!"

Joey snorted and then grinned. "How _I_ dared had nothing to do with it most of the time. Juppy at least behaves himself in public. You were always ready to go, no matter where we were, and you always dragged me along for the ride."

Chris looked indignant for another second, and then grinned. "But the ride was lots of fun, you gotta admit that, Joe-bear."

Joey grinned back at him. "I never said it wasn’t, Critter. I just said that yes, you were that horny, and hyper besides."

Chris shrugged, then looked at Justin and JC and grinned as he said, "Okay, so maybe I was, but still. Justin, he’s not gonna run off if you let go of him for a minute or three."

Justin grinned at Chris over JC’s shoulder. "He’s just fine where he is, thanks."

JC chuckled, then looked at Lance and asked again, "What did you need?"

Lance grinned at him. "Chris and Joe want to go shopping today, and I wanted to know if that sounded okay to you two."

Justin gave him a huge grin. "Oh yeah! I love shopping."

JC chuckled and patted Justin’s arm as he turned his head to look at him and said, "We knew that, baby," then JC grinned at Lance. "Shopping sounds like fun, where did y’all have in mind?"

Lance looked over at Mike and Charlie and asked, "Where would you two go if you were us?"

Mike looked at Charlie, who turned to look at Lance. "One of the malls, I guess."

Mike nodded. "Yeah, we’ve got a few really good ones around here, but where you wanna go depends on what you want. There’s the Myrtle Square mall just down the road from Pier 14, it has all the normal big-name mall stores like Sears and stuff, and then there’s Briarcliffe, it has a K-Mart, a Borders and a JC Penney and a bunch of small specialty stores that are a bit pricey but have lots of hard to find stuff. Broadway on the Beach has everything under the sun, but it’s usually got a lot of tourists and teenagers there even on a weekday and you guys are almost sure to be recognized."

Lance looked thoughtful a moment and then asked, "Is Briarcliffe usually busy on a Tuesday afternoon?"

Mike waggled his hand. "So, so. Won’t be as many kids at Briarcliffe – the trendy places to go are Broadway and Myrtle Square – but there will be people there. If you guys go like you’re dressed now and Justin wears a hat you should be able to get by without being recognized."

Lance looked at JC and Justin, then down at Joey and Chris. "That sound okay guys?"

JC grinned and nodded as Justin said, "Sure, any mall works, they’re always fun."

Chris nodded too, grinning. "Yeah."

Joey chuckled. "They just wanna go run around and waste some money babe, they don’t care where."

Lance laughed. "I think you’re right, Joe. Do you care where we go?"

Joey tipped his head back to grin up at Lance. "Not really, I just wanna watch you try and keep Chris out of trouble."

Chris said, "Hey!" while Lance chuckled, shaking his head.

"Mike, Charlie, you guys’ll come with us, right?" Lance asked after a moment, looking at the two teens expectantly.

Mike grinned while Charlie looked surprised and asked, "You want us to come?"

The guys all nodded, grinning as Lance said, "Yeah, if you don’t mind. We’d welcome the company, and it’d be nice to have someone along who knows the area."

"We don’t mind a bit," Charlie hastened to say, "I just thought you’d want it to be just the five of you."

Lance gave them a wry grin as Justin said, "Whether we do or not Lonnie and several of his guys will come along anyway and try to do the invisible man trick. We’d like to have y’all along to talk to, and to show us around."

Justin grinned at them as Lance nodded and added, "Yeah, and you should enjoy our time off with us while you can. Once we get back on the road you’ll be almost as busy as we are, and you won’t have time to do nice normal things like go to the mall. There’s only one rule if you guys are gonna come with us..." Lance trailed off and looked at them expectantly.

Charlie asked, "And that is?"

"We pay for everything," JC said with a big grin, "and if you see something you want or need, you have to say something."

Mike laughed. "Come on, that’s not fair. We’re working for you, not mooching off you."

Lance snorted and was about to speak when Chris said, "Dude, you’re not! All our people have the same deal if we invite them somewhere except Lonnie’s team, and the security guys all have credit cards we pay the bills on. We make a lot of money on tour and we want our folks to benefit from it, too."

Charlie and Mike exchanged a look as Lance raised an eyebrow at them and asked, "So, do you think you can handle our rule?"

Mike nodded as Charlie smiled and said, "I think so, thank you."

Chris grinned. "You’re welcome."

Lance chuckled. "You’ll earn it, have no fear. About the fourth time you have to help us do an appearance or even a concert on two hours sleep, you’ll be appreciating the fact we give our people whatever we can. Everyone who works for us earns the fringe benefits, I promise." Lance glanced at his watch then and said, "Guys, we’ve gotta get a move on and get our stuff off the buses, it’s nearly two."

Joey and Chris stood as Justin made a face and said, "What if there’s not anything on the bus I want?"

Lance snorted. "You just want to get Josh alone for a little while. I _know_ there’s stuff on the bus you want. Your leather jacket, your Docs, your _cell_ that you promised Lynn you’d find, your—"

"Okay! So there is, and you’re right, but you could get that stuff for me. You’re less likely to forget it than I am and you’d probably have to tell me where it all is anyway." Lance chuckled at that, thinking Justin was right, and Justin grinned at Lance, sure he’d won as he added, "You know it’s true, Scoop."

JC turned enough to look over his shoulder at Justin. "What if I need to go to the bus, baby?"

Justin gave JC a pouty look. "Do you really?"

JC looked thoughtful a minute, then grinned. "Well, no. But I might have."

Chris chuckled and shook his head, walking over to the couch to get his shoes.

Lance laughed and said, "Okay, you two stay up here if you want, and I’ll get your cellphones – Josh, yours is in your gym bag, I saw it when I put your clothes away the other day – and your jacket and the other stuff I think you two will want this week. You two had better be ready to go in half an hour, though, or I’m gonna dig out Joe’s camera and add to his collection." Lance grinned at them as Chris and Joey laughed, thinking of the time Joey had said in an interview that he’d get to sing on the next record because of his Polaroids of the two lead singers.

JC said, "Hey man, those pictures were all perfectly innocent!"

Charlie and Mike laughed as Chris called from the couch, "Maybe so, but your intentions towards the Infant right now definitely are not."

JC blushed slightly and Justin grinned and gave him a squeeze as Lance and Joey chuckled. "My intentions may not be innocent, but they’re good. That oughta count for something," JC said as his blush began fading.

Justin chuckled and added, "Especially since I’m gonna have just as much fun as Josh does." Justin ducked his head forward to nuzzle behind JC’s ear, making the brunette grin and squirm slightly before Justin moved to kiss his jaw. JC turned a bit in Justin’s arms then, laying his head back against Justin’s left shoulder to let the younger man really kiss him while JC’s left hand rubbed up and down Justin’s right arm.

Lance watched them for a second and then chuckled, shaking his head. "Just get it out of your systems now, you have to be good once you go out this door." Chris stood then and grinned as Lance went on, "Mike, Charlie, you two are welcome to come down to the bus with us, you’ll have to get acquainted with where things are eventually." Lance gave the two teens a quick smile and then headed for his room to get his shoes, Joey following Lance to find his own while Chris tagged along for no particular reason.

JC finally broke the kiss after a few minutes, smiling at Justin who grinned and ducked his head to nibble JC’s throat just above the collar of his shirt. JC giggled and hunched his shoulders, trying to squirm away as he said, "Baby, come on, quit, that tickles!"

Charlie and Mike grinned as Chris, Lance, and Joey walked back out into the room to see JC was still squirming and giggling while Justin kissed and nibbled his throat.

Chris rolled his eyes as he said, "I swear, that boy is a vampire."

Joey laughed as Justin quickly lifted his head, looking surprised while JC still giggled a bit.

Lance snorted and said, "No, he just likes it when JC giggles like that."

"The giggling is fun but not the best part," Justin said with a grin. "When he giggles Josh gets this whole full-body squirm thing going on that’s— Well, y’all don’t need to know, you’d just be jealous."

Chris and Joey both laughed as Charlie and JC turned bright red and JC swatted Justin’s shoulder. "Justin!" he said, sounding mortified.

Justin grinned at him, completely unrepentant. "Yeah, babe?"

JC made a face at him, his cheeks still pink. "You’re lucky I love you so much."

Justin’s grin widened. "Yup! I’m the luckiest person in the world, I get to learn things like that for myself. Everyone else has to just dream."

Lance, Joey, and Chris all laughed as JC turned even redder, opening his mouth twice to say something but shutting it before he did.

Justin leaned in after a moment to give him a slow, deep kiss before he pulled back a bit and smiled at JC. "I wouldn’t want to learn from anyone else, either."

JC gave him a little wry smile then, still blushing a bit as he said, "And I wouldn’t want you to, baby, even if you are shameless enough for the both of us."

Lance laughed again at the surprised look on Justin’s face and started towards the door. "Ain’t that the truth!"

Chris grinned. "Yeah, Juppy just might be shameless enough for _all_ of us."

"Hey!" Justin said, "I’m not the one who blew Joe _and_ had sex with Lance in the truck the other night!"

Joey laughed and headed after Lance towards the door, followed by Chris who smirked at Justin on his way by and said, "No, you’re the one who took our poor, shy Joshua’s clothes away from him and then took advantage of him in the back seat of our truck. At least _we_ all kept our clothes on until we got to the hotel."

Charlie and Mike exchanged wide-eyed looks, both wondering if there was anything these five didn’t do together.

Justin spluttered as JC turned red and hid his face against Justin’s shoulder, mumbling, "He has a point, baby."

Lance turned to look at Chris then, grinning. "The only reason you kept your clothes on is because they had the back seat and I wouldn’t let you strip in the front, and you know it, Chris."

Chris grinned and moved closer to Lance to put his hands on the blond’s hips. "Hey, _why_ I was good doesn’t matter, Scoop. Just the fact."

"I really should have known you’d say that, sweetheart." Lance chuckled and leaned forward to give Chris a quick kiss before he pulled away to continue to the door. "Now come on, it’s already two o’clock and we still have to get our stuff before we head to the mall."

Joey and Chris moved to follow him as Mike and Charlie rose to go help carry and incidentally give JC and Justin some privacy. Lance was the first out of the room and the others followed with Mike last, and Mike glanced back as he went out the door to see JC smiling as he backed towards their room while Justin kissed him and worked at the button on JC’s jeans.

Mike stepped outside then, pulling the door shut behind him and watching Lance lock it. "That’s a good idea," Mike said softly, smiling. "They looked like they might forget to shut their door."

Lance gave him a quick grin and replied just as quietly, "Knowing those two, they’ll forget they _have_ a door."

Lance put the keycard in his pocket and headed down the hall with Joey and Chris falling in on either side of him and Charlie following them. Mike chuckled and hurried to catch up to Charlie, and then followed the other three down the hall and into the elevator, listening to them discuss where they would go for supper later.

 

 


	34. Chapter 34

 

~~~~34~~~~

 

Justin kicked the door to their room shut behind him as he ducked a bit to let JC pull his t-shirt off over his head, then stepped towards JC again, expecting him to continue towards the bed. Justin was surprised when JC changed directions, pushing Justin back against the door with a thump and a grin as his hands began to roam Justin’s bare chest. JC leaned in close to kiss him then, exploring Justin’s mouth with his tongue while his fingers stroked just close enough to Justin’s sensitive nipples to make the younger man emit a soft frustrated noise. JC chuckled into the kiss and Justin began to work at JC’s jeans again, managing to get them unbuttoned before JC broke the kiss and moved away.

JC gave him a wicked little grin then and crossed the room to the table by the bed where he’d put the little stereo and his CDs the night before, picking up one of the folders to begin flipping through the discs. Justin’s arms came around him from behind a moment later and JC couldn’t help a slight shiver as he felt lips on the back of his neck even though he didn’t otherwise seem to notice that Justin was there.

"What in the world are you _doing_?" Justin asked a moment later, sounding bemused.

JC pulled a CD from the folder, not looking at Justin as he replied, "Putting in a CD, baby. What does it look like I’m doing?" Justin snorted and instead of replying he began to kiss and lick at the back of JC’s neck, making JC hunch his shoulders and bend forward to avoid him, grinning. "Baby, gimme a minute."

"Okay, but just one." Justin gave the back of JC’s head a pouty look, waiting patiently as the brunette put the CD in and pushed play.

JC turned to face him then, smiling. "Thank you. Now where were we?"

Justin smiled back. "You were getting naked."

JC grinned as the music started and he slid his hands around to the small of Justin’s back, pulling him closer and enjoying the feel of solid, smooth skin under his hands. "No, baby, I think that was you."

Justin cocked his head sideways, pretending to think, then shrugged and gave JC a wicked little grin. "I guess we’ll both have to, then."

"Sounds like a plan to me," JC replied with a grin, and then kissed Justin as the younger man’s hands slid up under his shirt.

Justin pulled away from the kiss to lift the shirt off over JC’s head after a moment, then he began working on JC’s jeans and kissing his neck and shoulder. JC stroked Justin’s back and sides while Justin kissed him, his head tipped back a bit to give Justin better access to his neck as he thought Chris was right. Justin did have a thing for JC’s neck, but JC truly didn’t mind at all.

Justin made short work of unzipping JC’s pants and soon had his hands inside them while JC impatiently fought with the buttons on Justin’s overly-tight jeans, thinking he really should get Justin to wear clothes with a zipper a little more often. Button-fly jeans looked great and they were comfortable, sure, but they were annoying as hell to try and unfasten when Justin was ... _distracting_ him ... like that.

JC gave up on Justin’s jeans with a groan a few minutes later and just held on to Justin’s shoulders, sure he would get rid of them himself in another minute or two. JC could tell from the way Justin had taken over that Justin wanted to make love to him, and he couldn’t do that unless he got rid of those damn jeans.

 

 

 

Lance unlocked the door to the suite almost forty-five minutes later, not at all surprised when he didn’t see JC and Justin waiting for them. Joey, Chris, Mike, and Charlie all followed him into the room carrying gym bags full of clothes, shoes, and odds and ends the guys would need while the buses were gone.

Lance went to make sure JC and Justin’s door was closed, and started shaking his head with a grin when he reached their door. JC was giggling loudly, and was playing the song ‘ _Wherever You Will Go_ ’ by that group Lance could never remember with the lead singer who looked like Nick Carter.

Lance heard Justin start laughing just as he knocked on their door and said, "Guys, we’re back, and I remembered the camera!"

Joey and Chris laughed on their way to their room while Mike wondered if Lance would make good on his threat. Lance really _had_ dug out an instant camera, and he’d even commented there was plenty of film for it, which had made Chris and Joey smirk at each other before they each grabbed an extra cartridge of film and claimed it as their own.

Justin laughed and said something Lance couldn’t make out, then JC called, "We’ll be out in a minute!"

"Or five!" Justin cheerfully added, just before JC shrieked and then started giggling again.

Lance chuckled and started towards his room, looking over his shoulder at Mike and Charlie to say, "You can just drop their stuff anywhere, it won’t take us long to put ours away."

Charlie grinned and put JC’s gym bag down in the floor by the breakfast bar. "No hurry, boss. The mall is open until eleven."

Mike put Justin’s bag with JC’s and hopped up to sit on the edge of the breakfast bar, looking amused.

Lance paused at the door to the room he shared with Joey and Chris, grinning at Charlie. "Yeah, but I’d rather go and get started. Once Justin and Chris are loose in a mall it’ll take them _hours_ to get bored enough they want to leave, and if Josh is in a shopping mood he’s just as bad." Lance disappeared into his room, closing the door behind him.

Charlie moved to sit in one of the chairs near Mike then, but Mike caught his shoulder and pulled him over to where he was in instead. "What?" Charlie asked, resting his hands on Mike’s thighs as he looked up at him with a smile, but Mike didn’t say anything, just grinned and pulled Charlie closer as he leaned down to kiss him.

About five minutes later Chris was the first to leave the room he shared with Joey and Lance, and when he saw Mike and Charlie he ducked back into the room, grabbing Lance by the hand to drag him out, grinning while he held a finger over his lips to keep him quiet.

Lance let Chris lead him over to the door with a tolerant smile, expecting to see JC and Justin doing something mildly embarrassing since Chris wasn’t excited enough for it to be something _really_ embarrassing. Lance’s eyebrows went up when he reached the door and saw what Chris had.

Mike’s hair – Lance hadn’t realized how long it really was until he saw it loose – was falling around Charlie’s face as Mike kissed him, Mike’s hands roaming down Charlie’s back and ass as he pulled the shorter teen closer.

Joey followed Lance and Chris to the door to see what they were staring at and grinned when he saw Mike and Charlie kissing, then stifled a laugh when Mike bent suddenly to slide his hands partway down Charlie’s thighs and pick him up off his feet with deceptive ease, lifting the redhead to sit astride his lap.

Charlie broke the kiss with a chuckle a moment later to say softly, "Mike, let me down." Charlie brushed Mike’s hair back a bit, smiling at him as Mike grinned and pulled him a little closer.

"Why?" Mike asked softly, "I’m perfectly comfortable with you right here."

Charlie chuckled again and kissed him quickly, then pulled back. "C’mon, love. The guys will be back in a minute."

Mike kissed him again and when Charlie moved away after only a moment Mike made a face and said, "Yeah, so? They said they didn’t mind us kissing."

Charlie snorted softly, a slight twinkle in his green eyes the only hint he was amused. "Kissing is one thing, the lap dance you’re hoping for is quite another."

Mike just grinned and leaned in for another kiss, not about to try and deny it since he knew Charlie wouldn’t believe him anyway.

Chris finally couldn’t stand it anymore and piped up, "Go right ahead, we don’t mind, I promise."

Lance swatted Chris’ shoulder, unable to hold back a grin as Joey chuckled behind them.

Charlie whipped his head around to look at the three watching them, turning bright red as Mike looked over Charlie’s shoulder to grin wryly at the guys.

"See," Mike said, trying to salvage the moment, "they don’t mind."

Charlie quickly looked back at Mike then, wide-eyed and still blushing hotly. "I do! Put me _down_ , Michael."

Mike made a face but lifted Charlie to set him back on his feet, knowing better than to argue with that tone.

"Thank you," Charlie said, not meeting anyone’s eyes as he stepped away from Mike, intending to sit in one of the chairs nearby.

Mike saw Charlie’s obvious embarrassment and said softly, "You don’t have to be ashamed, they knew we’re together."

Charlie looked back up at Mike quickly in surprise, forgetting his embarrassment for the moment as he replied firmly, "I am _not_ ashamed of you, Michael."

Mike gave Charlie a crooked little smile as he combed his fingers through his long blond hair, restoring some order to it as he got it out of his face. "I didn’t say you were, I said you were ashamed they saw us together. There’s a difference."

Charlie frowned, looking intently at Mike. "I love you, and I’m not ashamed to be seen with you, not by anyone. There are just some things I think should be kept between us."

Chris and Lance looked at each other, thinking that sounded pretty familiar, then looked back over at the couple by the table.

Mike’s smile didn’t waver as he looked calmly at Charlie and said, "Okay."

Lance grinned, thinking that was exactly the right response even though Charlie looked a little confused and surprised.

"Okay?" Charlie asked, "That’s it, no argument?"

Mike slid off the breakfast bar to stand leaning against it, still smiling. "No, I’m not gonna argue with you. Did you want me to?"

Joey stifled a laugh with a little soft snort, making Lance grin over his shoulder at him before he looked back over at Mike and Charlie.

Charlie looked confused for a moment longer, and then slowly smiled. "No, not really. I just sort of thought you would."

Mike chuckled and said, "I don’t very often, baby, hadn’t you noticed?" He stepped closer to Charlie to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Now, what did you do with the bandy-thing I had in my hair?"

Charlie made a face at him and sidestepped past him to pick up the thing Mike wanted off the table. "I’m not a baby, I’m only three months younger than you. And your hair wouldn’t need tied back if you’d get it cut."

Mike made a face at Charlie and took the hair band. "You’re _my_ baby and would be even if you were fifty.” He began gathering his hair into a ponytail again as he went on, "And I like it long. You do too, or you wouldn’t play with it so much."

Lance chuckled at that, earning a quick grin from Mike as Charlie blushed again.

"I’m sorry about that, we didn’t mean to interrupt," Lance said as he started across the room to the kitchen, smiling at Charlie. "Chris is nosy."

Chris snorted and walked over to sit in what he’d decided was going to be ‘his’ chair at the table, the end seat, and Joey followed with a grin to sit next to him on the living room side of the table.

Charlie gave Lance a quick smile and said, "Don’t be sorry, we shouldn’t have been kissing in your room to begin with."

Lance glanced over his shoulder at Charlie and then opened the fridge as he said, "If you don’t feel comfortable doing anything where someone can see you that’s one thing – and I can totally understand, knowing how you’ve had to hide your relationship – but if you just don’t want to make a bad impression then don’t worry about it. We don’t mind, and I’m sure you’ll see us all in much more compromising positions."

Charlie looked thoughtful as Lance took out a can of Dr. Pepper then and looked over at Joey, who smiled and nodded as Chris said, "And would you grab me a Dew, babe?"

Mike grinned and sat down in one of the other chairs, wondering if they realized how close they came to reading each other’s minds as Lance took out two more cans, then started back over to the table.

"It’s a little of both I guess," Charlie said thoughtfully. "I mean, until we told you guys there were three people in the world who knew we were gay. _Nobody_ had ever seen us kiss except Kelsey, and she only caught us a few times as far as I know. Deciding to come out was easy, but getting used to not hiding how I feel will be a little harder."

JC opened the door to the room he shared with Justin in time to hear the last sentence and chuckled as he pulled it shut behind him. "If Mike is anything like Justin, you’ll get used to it pretty quick in self defense."

Charlie looked over at JC, the slight widening of his eyes the only indication he was surprised to see JC walking towards the others carrying his t-shirt instead of wearing it.

"Tease," Chris said, grinning and watching JC appreciatively as the brunette paused and pulled on his shirt, tempted to say something about the second hickey on JC’s abs but deciding he’d be nice just this once.

JC’s head popped through the neck of the shirt and he tugged it down, grinning back at Chris. "No, just not wanting Lance to come hunt me down with a camera."

Lance chuckled. "I wouldn’t have, pictures could be dangerous."

JC walked past the table into the kitchen to get a can of Mountan Dew, grinning. "Don’t tell Justin that."

"Don’t tell Justin what?" Justin asked as he walked out into the main room of the suite carrying two pairs of shoes, fully dressed and looking more than a little smug.

Chris looked at Justin and laughed. "You dressed in a hurry, didn’t you Infant?"

Joey and Lance looked at Justin then and both of them laughed.

Justin looked surprised as he dropped JC’s shoes on the floor between the two empty chairs before flopping down in one to put his own shoes on. "Why do you ask?"

JC walked over to sit in the chair next to him, chuckling. "Because your shirt is inside out, baby."

Justin looked down at his chest, and then grinned. "Oops." He put the shoe he was holding down in his lap and then pulled his t-shirt off with one smooth motion so he could turn it right side out.

"I’ve wondered something for a while now," Mike said then, watching Justin with a grin and wondering when Justin found time to work out. "Why did you get that tattoo on your arm?"

Justin looked across the table at him, returning the grin, and then pulled his shirt back on before he said, "I lost a bet with Britney." JC, Chris, Joey, and Lance all grinned, knowing the story, and listened as Justin went on. "We were sitting around our place in California one night, watching basketball and drinking a funky concoction Wade made for us, and during a commercial Brit bet me that one certain player would get the next basket. I wanted to know what she was betting, and then she said a tattoo, and I was pretty smashed but I distinctly remember thinking ‘Hey, cool, I’ll get to make her get another tatt’. I took the bet and I lost almost immediately, and she had fun picking out a tattoo for me that the fans would be sure to see and ask about like hers."

Justin picked up his shoe again to put it on then as Charlie chuckled and Mike grinned and asked, "Do you two usually make bets that involve permanently marking each other?"

Lance laughed and Joey, Charlie, and Chris all grinned as Justin gave Mike a wry look. "Only when I’m drunk."

"And how often are you going to be getting drunk with lil’ Miss Britney?" JC asked with a raised eyebrow, trying to hide a grin.

Justin grinned at JC. "I’m not, unless you’re there to keep me from making stupid bets."

JC grinned back at him and bent to pick up one of his shoes. “Good answer.”

Chris laughed and said, "He _can_ be taught!"

Justin made a face at Chris and picked up his other shoe to put it on. "Hey, that was the first time I’d lost. I think the fairy on Britney’s back was worth the risk."

JC snorted and looked at Justin as he pulled his knee to his chest and slipped on his shoe.

Joey chuckled as Chris asked incredulously, "You made her get the fairy tattoo?!"

Justin grinned at his shoes. "Yup! A fairy tattoo for the girlfriend of a fairy. I thought it was pretty fitting."

Mike, Chris, and Joey laughed at that but JC just shook his head and chuckled softly.

"Justin, is that really why she got that fairy?" Lance asked, looking like he was trying not to laugh. "I thought she had a thing for them, like some girls and roses or butterflies."

Justin nodded without looking up as he pulled the laces on his Converse tight and then started to tie them. "Yep. Her publicity people had to make up the story about how she loves fairies and that was of course why she got the tattoo. They just didn’t mention the fairies Brit likes best are all male, and her favorite one is a little bi." Justin grinned at Lance then and went on, "Britters got in deep trouble with Jive a few months ago when a reporter for Entertainment Tonight cornered her at a party and asked her how it felt to be a gay icon. Out magazine had just done that article about her, and she said," he paused, then went on in a passable imitation of Brit’s voice, "‘Oh my God, it’s so cool! Like, all my best friends are gay.’"

Charlie’s eyes widened as Joey, Chris, and Mike laughed again.

Justin picked up the Dew JC had been drinking and took a swallow as Lance chuckled and said, "And this is the same sweet little girl who tells the whole world you are her very best friend and the rest of us are like brothers to her."

Justin nodded, grinning as he put the can back down. "Uh-huh. Jive threatened to pull her contract if she ever did it again, and she told them she couldn’t wait until they did because we would follow her to whatever label she signed with next and then Jive’s domination of the teen music market would be history."

Chris laughed. "That had to go over like a turd in a punch bowl."

Justin nodded again. "Pretty much. Jive called me to make her behave and I told them I would go where she goes, and that I knew you guys would come with me. Jive quit bugging her." Justin grinned at Chris.

JC chuckled. "You should have pointed out to them that between the five of us we really don’t need a them."

Lance’s eyebrows went up and he looked suddenly thoughtful while Joey and Chris stared at JC like he’d said the world was square or something.

Justin just gave JC a bright grin. "That would be so cool, babe. We could do whatever we wanted to and wouldn’t have to use Jive’s crappy lyricists on our albums any more."

JC nodded, smiling. "Yeah, it’d be great and I know we could do it if we had to."

Lance spoke suddenly, looking at Chris. "We could, couldn’t we?"

Mike and Charlie watched, surprised at how seriously the guys were taking a passing comment JC had made.

Chris’ eyes were bright and wide as he looked at Lance, his face showing the unmistakable hyped-up expression he always got when his brain was in overdrive. "Yeah, baby, I think we could! You already have FreeLance, they could find someone to press the CDs for us, and between me, JC, and Justin we already write almost all of our own music and do the production too, and FuMan could handle the merchandising. We would lose folks if we left Jive, but the people we got as replacements would be loyal to us, not to a company we don’t even like."

JC and Justin looked at the two of them, just as surprised that they were taking this seriously as Charlie and Mike were. JC and Justin had always been the dreamers of the group, and the guys usually didn’t pay much attention to their crazy ideas.

Joey looked at Chris and then at Lance. "Scoop? Why haven’t we done it before now if it would be so easy?"

Lance looked thoughtful as he said, "Well, there would be a lot of legal crap and some pretty hefty penalties if we broke the contract we have before it’s due for renewal, but other than that there’s really no reason I know of. I’d just never thought about it." He shrugged. "It would make things a lot different. Not necessarily easier, but definitely much better for us I think. There would be more work for me, but there would be a lot more freedom for us all too, and we wouldn’t lose so much of what we make to Jive."

Lance paused for a moment, thinking fast, and then went on. "We could set our own tour schedules if we took over our management, but I could do that easy, I’ve though about it before since I already have to okay most of it. JC wouldn’t have to find other groups do his songs that we like but Jive doesn’t, Brit could sing with us or even _tour_ with us again if she wanted to, and Josh and Jup could do those other collaborations they’ve wanted to do." Lance grinned suddenly then and said, "It’d be a lot of work, but I think it would be worth it, and I know we could handle it."

Chris grinned back at him. "So we don’t have to be quite so careful that Jive doesn’t find out about us, all they can do is cancel our contract."

Lance looked like he was going to argue, then suddenly laughed. "Hey, you’re right. We still have to be good in public – letting the fans know right now isn’t a good idea, we all know that – but we don’t have to be quite so careful about the girls Jive has working for us."

Charlie suddenly spoke then, surprising everyone. "I think Joanna might already know something, or at least suspect."

Lance and Chris exchanged a look, then both looked at Charlie as Lance asked, "What makes you think so? Did she say something?"

Mike spoke up then. "Not precisely, but she dropped a couple of hints. She told us you guys usually lose assistants because they figure out ‘Justin really does love Britney and JC – gorgeous as he is -- isn’t looking for more company’, and then a few minutes later she said she thought we would have a lot in common with JC, right after we told her we were together and had been for years. Oh, and she also told me to throw away any of the fan mail that was addressed to JC and Justin together, like you guys aren’t supposed to see it."

Lance frowned. "That does make it sound like she knows something, but that could just be because we know." He looked at Chris and asked, "What do you think?"

Chris looked serious. "I think you need to have a talk with Joanna. Tell her that a fan wrote you and asked if JC and Justin were together – which has happened to me more than once – and ask if it looks like they’re together to her too, or if it’s just one of those crazy rumors the kids start. I don’t think she’ll lie to you."

"Maybe I should ask her," JC said then, looking thoughtful. "Just the other night those last few fans we signed autographs for asked Justin and I how long we’ve been together. We told them we aren’t – which was true then so I didn’t even have to try to lie to them – and they didn’t argue but I had the feeling they didn’t believe us. The woman who asked us wasn’t some kid though, she was my age or a little older."

Lance looked surprised. "Why didn’t you say anything?"

JC shrugged and looked sheepishly at Lance. "I didn’t want to make a big deal about it at first because it hit a little too close to home. About the time I was beginning to think I should say something you and Justin got into it, then he asked you if you were gay and I answered him without thinking about it."

JC gave him a wry grin as Lance chuckled and finished for him, "And I know you had better things to think about after that, like how to keep Justin’s clothes on him instead of the floor."

JC laughed, nodding, as Justin said, "Hey! I wasn’t that bad!"

JC stood to go throw away the empty cans on the table and get another for him and Justin then, pausing to kiss Justin’s cheek and then say, "Close enough, baby."

Justin gave him a dirty look as Lance rose, grinning. "I’ll be back in a few minutes, I’ve got to go have Jo change the reservations for tonight since we’re staying here one more day, then I have to talk to Lonnie about our trip to the mall. Charlie, Mike, do you two want to ride with us or are you going take your car?"

Charlie looked at Mike, who shrugged, so Charlie looked back over at Lance and said, "Whatever would be easiest for you guys. If we take the Tracker you guys could just follow us over there, but giving you directions would be just as easy I think."

Lance looked thoughtful a moment, then smiled. "I’m sure with us going to a mall Lonnie will want to bring a full truckload of his guys, so that would mean we’d be a little crowded fitting seven of us in our Expedition. I guess it’d be best if you go ahead and take your car, if you don’t mind..." Lance trailed off, looking questioningly at Charlie as JC walked over to stand behind Justin, resting his hands on Justin’s shoulders as he listened to the other two.

Charlie nodded, grinning. "Sounds good to me, boss."

Lance grinned. "Good," he said, then turned to go just as Joey reached out and grabbed the waistband of his jeans, pulling Lance backwards to sit sideways across his lap. Lance chuckled and wrapped an arm around Joey’s neck as he said, "Did you want something, dear?"

Joey grinned. "Yeah... You." He lifted one hand to the back of Lance’s neck and guided the blond closer to kiss him rather thoroughly as Mike, Chris, JC, and Justin watched, all of them grinning. Within a couple of minutes it was obvious Lance had taken over, slowly exploring Joey’s mouth with his tongue while Joey’s hands roamed over his back and one thigh.

Charlie was blushing and kept looking down at the table because he felt like it was wrong to watch them, but his eyes kept finding their way back to the kissing couple, fascinated. Mike made no attempt not to watch them until he saw Charlie’s face out of the corner of his eye, then he watched Charlie watching them, grinning at Charlie’s obvious fascination and embarrassment. Mike thought it was adorable how easily Charlie was embarrassed in public, since he well knew that when he and Charlie were alone it was totally different. There was very little Charlie was afraid to do or say in front of Mike, and when they were alone it took no effort at all from Mike for Charlie to lose all of his inhibitions.

Lance finally pulled away from Joey a few minutes later to smile at him, his green eyes bright as he asked softly, "Think that’ll tide you over until tonight?"

Joey’s hands stilled where the were, one under the back of Lance’s shirt and the other high on his thigh, and he gave Lance a wry grin as he answered, "It’ll have to, won’t it, babe?"

Lance grinned. "Pretty much, yeah. Now let me up."

Joey chuckled and moved his hands to Lance’s waist, easily lifting him back to his feet.

Lance smiled at Joey and leaned over to kiss him one more time before he moved over to Chris’ chair to look down at the older man. "Your turn," Lance said with a little grin.

Chris grinned and reached out to put his hands on Lance’s hips and pull him closer, making Lance chuckle softly as he braced his hands on the arms of Chris’ chair and leaned down to kiss him. Chris let his hands roam down over Lance’s rear after only a minute, tipping his head back further to make it easier for Lance to kiss him as the younger man tipped his head sideways a bit, changing the angle to deepen their kiss. They remained like that for several minutes while Chris’ hands got more and more familiar before Lance broke the kiss to grin down at Chris and say softly, "If you keep that up I just might have to drag you off for a few minutes alone."

Charlie was looking down at his hands, blushing hotly as he wondered how they could be comfortable being so intimate in front of someone they had known only a few days. Charlie glanced up when Chris chuckled though, and saw Chris’ hands slowly rubbing Lance’s ass as Chris replied, "That was the whole idea, baby."

Joey laughed as Lance chuckled and said, "You’re out of luck until later, sweetheart. We have to get a move on if we’re going. Go play with Joe-bear." Lance grinned and gave Chris a quick kiss before he pulled away and then headed for the room he shared with Chris and Joey, confusing them all until he came right back out with his backpack. Lance headed for the door, looking across the room at JC and Justin as he walked to say, "I’ll be back soon guys, be ready to go, okay?"

JC nodded, smiling. "We will be."

Lance gave him a quick grin and left as Chris stood and started towards their room asking, "Joe, you want me to get your wallet?"

Joey shook his head and stood follow him as he said, "No, I’ll come find it. It’s in my suitcase I think."

Joey and Chris both disappeared into their room, leaving the door open, and JC looked down at Justin, smiling. "Baby, I’m gonna go get our stuff. Is there anything you want me to put in your bag?"

Justin shook his head, smiling. "No, I don’t think so."

JC grinned. "Okay, I’ll be right back. While I’m getting our stuff you need to find your cell, okay?"

Justin nodded. "I will." JC gave him a quick grin and headed for their room, and Justin looked across the table at Charlie and Mike to ask, "Where did you guys put our bags?"

Mike grinned. "Right here." He bent to pick up Justin’s bag and handed it across the table to him before he reached for JC’s bag and did the same.

"Thanks!" Justin said with a grin, pulling his bag into his lap to unzip it and begin going through it.

 

 


	35. Chapter 35

 

~~~~35~~~~

 

"We didn’t separate anything," Charlie said after a moment, making Justin look up. "Lance said it would just be a waste of time since you two would probably just pile it all together anyway. I think the cell phones and your CDs are in the other bag, it was mostly clothes and your jacket that he put in that one."

Justin grinned. "Thanks. He was right, there’s no reason to sort it anymore." He looked back down at the bag he held and dug around until he found a corner of his old brown leather jacket, pulling it out carefully so he wouldn’t dump everything else in the bag into the floor.

Justin laid the coat on the table and then zipped the bag back up, putting it in the chair next to him as Charlie said hesitantly, "Umm... Justin? It won’t be that cold at the mall."

Justin grinned at Charlie and reached for JC’s bag, pulling it into his lap. "Oh I won’t need it. It’s for Josh." Justin unzipped the other bag and began going through it, setting two cell phones and an ugly green wallet on the table as he went on. "He gets cold easy, and I promised Lance we would try harder to be good." Justin looked a bit sheepish as he admitted, "If I just put my arm around him like I normally would I won’t remember to stop there and I know it, so I can’t do that in public anymore."

Mike grinned. "Why not take his jean jacket then? Lance put it in the same bag as yours."

Justin looked up again to grin at Mike and then zipped JC’s bag shut and dropped it on top of his own. "Well, I could, but he usually wears this one if I’m not wearing it."

JC came out of their room then, carrying Justin’s bag and a denim baseball cap as he crossed the room to stand by Justin.

Charlie gave Justin a confused look and asked, "If he likes your jacket better, then why not just get him one like it?"

Justin gave Charlie a wry grin. "I did, but I’ve never once seen him wear it. I think it’s still hanging in the hall closet in his place in Orlando."

JC chuckled and laid the cap on the table, then handed Justin the backpack as he said, "It is, only that’s _our_ place, baby, it always has been. You have just as much stuff there as I do, even if you haven’t been around much recently." JC patted Justin’s shoulder, and then smiled at Mike and Charlie. "And it’s not the style of the coat that I like. I like this particular coat."

Mike grinned, nodding. “I got that idea.”

Justin looked mildly surprised and smiled up at JC as he asked, "Is that why you always borrow mine even though I bought you one?" He put their cell phones and the ugly green wallet in his backpack without really bothering to watch what he was doing, his attention on JC. "I thought you just liked this kind of jacket."

JC nodded, smiling. "Wearing your coat was the closest I could get to you for a long time, baby, and I sort of got to like it, especially this one." JC picked the distressed leather jacket up off the table and shrugged into it, the supple old jacket draping loosely around him as he lifted the collar to his face and inhaled the scent of the coat, then let his hands fall back to his sides as he smiled at Justin. "It’s comfortable and not too heavy, and it smells like good leather and you."

Justin zipped his backpack and stood, grinning at JC as he laid the bag on the table. "Y’know, babe, if you want to smell me, you could always go straight to the source."

JC grinned at Justin and stepped closer, lifting his arms to put them around Justin’s neck. "I do baby, every chance I get." JC kissed him then as Justin’s arms slid around him under the jacket, holding him close while Charlie and Mike watched them, smiling.

JC and Justin parted a moment later when Chris and Joey walked back into the room, just as Joey said, "He’ll kick your ass if you do it, Critter. He’ll put up with almost anything from you, but that’d be pushing him a bit too far."

JC and Justin looked over at them, grinning as Chris said, "Aw Joe, c’mon, we could sneak it into his shampoo without any problem. He’d look good with purple hair!"

JC laughed, turning in Justin’s arms to lean back against his chest and completely face the others while Justin shifted his arms to wrap around JC outside the jacket. "Chris," JC said with a grin, "he’d kill you! Twice!"

Joey sat back down at the table, nodding. "Tell him, Josh. He won’t listen to me."

Chris bounced in place next to Joey, still grinning, and looked at Justin as he said, "You’ll help me, won’t you, Jup?"

Justin shook his head, grinning. "Oh no, you ain’t gettin’ this idiot into it with the Bassman, he ain’t in love with me!"

Mike laughed as JC chuckled, patting Justin’s arm. "Good boy," JC said, grinning over his shoulder at Justin, then looked at Chris and asked, "Chris, don’t you remember how pissed Lance was when you accidentally dyed his hair blue forever and a week ago? How mad do you think he’d get if you did it _on purpose_?"

Chris grinned smugly. "He loves me, he won’t kill me."

Mike laughed again as Charlie snorted softly, shaking his head and thinking that sounded like something Mike would say. Or even _had_ said at some point, most likely.

Joey rolled his eyes as Justin said, "Chris, killing you would be too easy. What do you think he _would_ do?"

Chris looked thoughtful a minute, then shrugged, still grinning. "I dunno. Yell at me or something."

JC snorted. "Yeah, ‘or something’. Like make you sleep on the couch – alone! – for the rest of the _tour_!"

Joey and Justin both laughed, nodding. "Yep," Justin said, "that sounds about right."

Joey added, "And I ain’t helping you either Critter, I like sleeping with our baby boy."

Chris looked a bit less enthusiastic as he looked at Joey and then back at JC. "You really think he would do that?"

Justin chuckled as JC said, "Yeah, Chris, he would. He loves you but he’d still make you regret it, at least until the purple grew out."

Chris looked at Joey, who nodded, then he sighed and flopped down in the chair next to Joey, looking dejected. "That’d be for-fucking-ever, all the bleach has made his hair grow too damn slow." He paused a moment, thinking, and then grinned. "Oh well, I guess I’ll just dye _my_ hair purple instead."

JC laughed. "You’re crazy, you know that, right?"

Chris grinned at him. "Course I do, folks have been telling me that since I was knee high to a short Kirkpatrick." He paused a beat, then added, "And I’m a tall Kirkpatrick so that was pretty damn short."

Mike and JC laughed again at that as Justin absently slipped one hand inside the leather jacket JC still wore to slowly stroke JC’s abs, turning his head to nuzzle the brunette’s hair.

Chris watched for a second, grinning, and then said, "Juppy, you’re supposed to be behaving yourself for the afternoon, remember?"

Justin made a face and pulled his hand out of the jacket. "I know, I know. I’ll go put our junk up, then I won’t be touching Josh so I won’t be tempted." Justin kissed JC’s neck and then picked up the bags out of the nearby chair to head towards their room.

JC watched him go with a smile, then sat down in the chair Justin had been in, still wearing the jacket as he picked up the can of Dew Justin had abandoned and took a drink.

"Josh?" Joey asked after a moment, making JC look over questioningly as he put the can back down. "Are you that cold? I can turn the AC down..."

JC grinned. "Don’t bother, I’m fine." He shrugged out of the sleeves of the jacket, leaving it draped around his back in the chair. "I was just making a point."

Joey gave him a wry grin. "What, that you’re always cold and wearing Justin’s jacket?"

Charlie and Mike both grinned at that and JC chuckled, nodding. "Something like that, yeah."

Chris had been quiet a minute, thinking, and suddenly said, "Charlie, I know I’m just being nosy, but I’m curious. Why does it bother you to watch Lance and Joe kiss, but not JC and Justin?"

Charlie blushed and was about to say something when Joey nodded, smiling. "I’d noticed that too, only with Chris. Why would seeing Lance kiss someone bother you more than watching our two lovebirds make out?"

"I-- I don’t know," Charlie said, still blushing bright red.

Mike gave Charlie a sympathetic smile, and then looked over at Chris and Joey. "I think I can probably answer that, Charlie can correct me if I’m wrong." He glanced back at Charlie, who nodded quickly, still bright red. Mike looked back over at Chris and Joey as he explained, "We’ve thought JC and Justin were together for years, literally, and Charlie’s had time to get really used to the idea. The whole idea that you three might be together never even crossed our minds. We thought Lance might be bi, but we were – or at least _I_ was – pretty sure you two were straight."

Chris raised an eyebrow skeptically, looking at Charlie. "Is it that simple?"

Charlie chewed at his lip a second before he answered, his cheeks still flaming even though he’d had a chance to think about it now and could answer without making a fool of himself. "Well, kind of. I’ve thought JC and Justin were made for each other for years, and seeing them together just feels right no matter what they are doing. Seeing you two with Lance makes me feel like I’m watching something private. I don’t know why." Charlie shrugged, giving them a wry little smile.

Chris returned the smile, thinking that made sense, but Joey looked at Charlie a minute before he asked, "Is it that you don’t think we love Lance as much as JC and Justin love each other?"

Justin walked out of his room in time to hear that and his eyebrows went up, then he saw how serious they all looked and wondered what was going on as he walked over to sit by JC.

Charlie shook his head quickly, wide-eyed. "Oh no! You three are—" He broke off, looking thoughtful as he tried to think of how to explain it, then went on, "You three love each other, there is no doubt in my mind, but the whole vibe is different. JC and Justin are like two pieces of one person, they’re that close, but you three are separate, equal individuals. JC and Justin would be completely lost without each other, but I get the feeling you three would find a way to go on. Does that make sense?"

Joey and Chris both looked surprised at that, but JC spoke up with a smile, "Yeah, I think I know what you mean, Charlie. I couldn’t live without Justin, but Joey, Lance, or Chris could pick up the pieces and go on with life if they had to."

Charlie nodded, but Chris shook his head, frowning, and said, "It may look that way to y’all, but you’re wrong. I tried to do that once, and I spent six years watching the man I loved with other people, even being with other people myself. I couldn’t take it again."

JC shook his head, looking at Chris as he clarified, "I don’t mean you guys breaking up, Chris, that’s never gonna happen. Even if Justin and I would stand by and watch it, you three love each other too much to ever split up. I meant how you’d handle it if something happened to one of you. I simply wouldn’t go on without Justin." JC was completely calm, as though he’d just said it was going to rain.

Justin reached over to take JC’s hand, looking serious and maybe even a little sad as JC smiled at Justin, squeezing his hand reassuringly before he looked back over at Chris.

Chris looked at JC for a long moment, his brown eyes dark and serious as he said quietly, "Josh, that’s not healthy."

JC just smiled and shrugged one shoulder. He knew how he felt and he wasn’t going to try and make excuses for it.

Joey patted Chris’ knee. "Maybe not, sweetheart, but that’s how it’s been as long as I’ve known them. JC needs Justin just like he needs air to breathe, and Jup loves him with all his heart." Joey paused a second, and then said with a little smile, "And you just proved Josh’s point for him, pretty much."

Chris looked surprised for a moment and then chuckled. "I guess I did at that," Chris said, deciding not to continue the discussion because it was a bit too heavy and he hated being serious. He stood, stepping between his and Joey’s chairs to head for the kitchen, pausing there looking down at Joey as he asked, "Wanna share a Dr. Pepper with me Joe-bear?"

Joey grinned and reached for Chris’ hand to tug him closer. "Sure, after you give me a kiss to tide me over until tonight."

Chris returned the grin and stepped closer to Joey. "Sounds like a plan to me."

Joey let go of Chris’ hand, reaching up to cup the back of Chris’ neck as Chris leaned down to kiss him. Joey’s hand slid down Chris’ back after a long moment and he urged the smaller man closer, making Chris chuckle into the kiss as he moved to sit sideways across Joey’s lap.

Charlie watched them a moment, smiling even though he blushed slightly when Chris sat in Joey’s lap, then looked at the glass of water in front of him to see JC watching him across the table.

JC grinned and gave him a wink, then let go of Justin’s hand and stood, brushing a quick kiss across Justin’s forehead before he walked to the refrigerator and got out another Dew for himself and Justin and a Dr. Pepper for the other two. JC walked over to Joey and Chris then and put the Dr. Pepper on the table near them as he said, "I got your drink, guys."

Chris lifted his hand from the back of Joey’s neck to give a little wave to show he’d heard JC but otherwise ignored him, and JC chuckled as he walked back over to sit next to Justin, handing the can to him to open.

Justin grinned at JC as he popped the tab and said, "Somehow I think they’ve decided they weren’t very thirsty after all."

Mike chuckled then, just as they heard the door to the room unlock, then Lance’s voice come through the barely open door. "Thanks, Jo, we really appreciate it."

Chris and Joey pulled apart hastily and Chris moved to the chair next to Joey just before Lance stepped into the room, then closed the door behind him and walked over to the table.

Lance took one look at Joey, and then looked at Chris and chuckled, shaking his head.

Chris raised his eyebrows. "What’s so funny?"

Lance grinned. "Sweetheart, you look like you’ve just been thoroughly kissed." He ducked to give Chris a quick kiss before he moved to the empty chair next to Joey and said, "Not to mention the fact Joey’s jeans are a lot tighter than they should be."

JC and Justin both laughed at that, while Mike grinned and Joey snorted, shifting in his chair as he gave Lance a dirty look. "You started it, Scoop. He just made it worse."

Lance chuckled and reached over to pat Joey’s knee. "You’ll have plenty of time to walk it off at the mall, love, don’t worry."

Joey made a face at him as Chris stood and said, "Or you could follow me into our room and let me take care of that for you." Chris grinned wickedly at Joey and then walked quickly to their room, leaving the door open as he disappeared inside.

Joey watched him go, looking more than a little like he wanted to follow him, and Lance laughed. "Go on, Joe. Lonnie and the guys won’t be ready to go for another ten minutes at least. Besides, you and I both know that if you don’t do it now, Chris will just drag you into the bathroom or something at the mall."

"Well, if you put it that way," Joey said with a wry grin for Lance, "I might as well."

Joey stood and then went into their room, closing the door behind him as they all clearly heard Chris say, "Took you long enough, Joe-bear."

Lance laughed, shaking his head as he picked up the Dr. Pepper the other two hadn’t even bothered to open.

"You took a while. Did Lonnie fuss at you much?" Justin asked with a grin after Lance took a long drink of the Dr. Pepper.

Lance chuckled. "He wasn’t thrilled, but he didn’t really argue about it. He knew we’d want at least one shopping trip this week. Fixing the reservations with the place out on Pawley’s Island took the most time, they were in the middle of a retirement party at one of their houses and somebody had to go find the lady who handles reservations, then she had to find our reservation and change it from tonight and tomorrow to starting tomorrow and going through the rest of the week."

JC grinned. "We get to stay at the beach the rest of the week?!"

Lance nodded, grinning back at him. "Yeah, we’ll have a house on a private beach all to ourselves, and since it’s in a gated community Scott and Dre are the only ones who are gonna have to stay in the house next door to keep an eye on us. Everyone else is staying here."

Justin looked at Lance, curious. "How big is the house?"

"Four bedroom, three and a half bath with a big outdoor hot tub, a den with a complete entertainment center, and a deck that runs along the back and side of the house and has a beautiful view," Lance answered, grinning at Justin. "It’s a nice old house, I saw pictures of it online when I reserved the place." Lance looked over at Charlie and Mike with a grin. "And you two are welcome to come with us. We’d enjoy the company, but if you’d rather not you can stay here with Lonnie and the rest of our team."

Charlie looked at Mike, who just grinned at him, then Charlie looked back at Lance and smiled. "We’d love to go along, Pawley’s is nice this time of year and that sounds too good to miss."

Lance chuckled. "From the pictures I saw it will be, definitely."

Justin had been watching JC with a little grin and JC finally couldn’t take it anymore. "What is it, baby?" he asked, giving Justin a wry look.

"Nothing," Justin replied, his grin widening just a little bit.

JC snorted. "Baby, that grin isn’t at ‘nothing’. What?"

"Well," Justin replied, "if you _really_ want to know, I was just thinking about you in a hot tub. It’s a sight to see."

Mike grinned and looked at Charlie, whose eyes went a little big as he shook his head quickly. "Don’t even think about it, Mikey."

Mike pouted as Lance chuckled, and Justin grinned even wider at JC, who had blushed bright red.

JC surprised Justin with his quick recovery when he grinned back, still blushing, and said, "Baby, if you think that little bitty hot tub in Nashville was fun, you’re gonna love a real one."

Lance laughed at that, his green eyes sparkling. "You two just might have to stand in line, I’ve got plans for that hot tub myself. The last one was fun, but really too small for three people."

JC looked at Lance a moment, measuringly, then gave him a sly little grin. "Well, you did say it was a _big_ hot tub..."

Justin’s eyes widened at that and Mike’s eyebrows went up a bit while Charlie just looked shocked.

Lance laughed delightedly, looking a bit surprised himself as he said, "Yeah, it is. I was told it’s a party-sized hot tub. They usually hold at least eight people, more if you’re friendly."

JC grinned wickedly. "Cool."

Lance laughed again as Justin chuckled, shaking his head, and then said, "Josh, sweetheart, what happened to not wanting the others to see you naked?"

JC looked artfully shocked, his blue eyes going all wide and pretty. "Justin! Who said anything about getting naked with them?! I swear, you have such a dirty mind sometimes."

Lance and Mike both laughed as Justin snorted and said, "Nice try, babe."

JC grinned unrepentantly and picked up their Dew to take a drink.

Chris suddenly walked out of the room he shared with Joey and Lance, making them all look in that direction as Chris called over his shoulder, "Hold that thought, dammit, I’ll be right back."

Chris was wearing nothing but a pair of unbuttoned jeans that were tight enough they left little to the imagination and were probably even his, leaving his surprisingly muscular upper body bare, which drew Charlie and Mike’s gaze like a magnet. The others had seen Chris shirtless before so it was no surprise to them that he had quite a bit of body hair – there was a reason Joey called him ‘Critter’ after all – but Charlie and Mike had never seen anything but publicity photos, which all showed the smooth skin their PR people said their fans preferred. Chris and Joey both had to wax for pictures that might show anything below the collarbone, but it had been a while since Chris wore anything that they had to wax for in a photo shoot. Chris’ chest was fairly well covered with hair, and there was a liberal dusting of coarse black hair leading down to an even denser treaure trail.

Lance’s eyebrows went up as he watched Chris walk towards them and asked, "Sweetheart, I’m not sure I want to know, but what the hell are you doing?"

Chris grinned at him and walked quickly towards the bathroom. "Making a supply run."

Charlie turned bright red as JC, Mike, and Justin all grinned, and Lance laughed. "Did you look in the drawer by the bed?"

Chris nodded and disappeared into the bathroom as he called, "Yeah, babe. We used all of that this morning."

JC and Justin both laughed at that, remembering that Chris had gone just the night before to get more lube as Lance shook his head, grinning wryly.

Lance waited until Chris reappeared before he said, "Brit was right, that box may not last us a week."

Chris paused to give Lance a wicked grin. "If my luck holds out, it definitely won’t." He disappeared back into the room he shared with Joey and Lance, closing the door behind him.

Justin grinned at Lance. "Why don’t I just take out a few tubes for me and Josh and let y’all take the box?"

JC laughed and nodded. "Yeah, we don’t go through it near like you three do."

Charlie’s blush seemed to be a semi-permanent thing by then, but Mike was just grinning and listening. He and Charlie had never been around other gay men, and Mike was more than a little curious, glad that the guys seemed willing to talk in front of them.

Lance gave JC and Justin a wry grin. "No, leave it where it is. Chris seems fascinated by some of the more imaginative things Brit snitched from Wade – he’s known he was bi since I was ten but I gather he’s never really played around much – and he’d waste half of it just trying to figure it out."

Justin snorted, grinning. "You’re kidding, right?"

Lance shook his head, grinning as JC laughed again and said, "It’s not like it’s that hard to figure out what flavored lube is for!"

Mike’s eyes widened at that and Charlie jumped up, mumbling something about going to get something as he fled to the next suite, his face flaming.

JC watched him go, then gave Mike a sheepish grin. "Sorry. I forgot you guys were here."

Mike was still a bit wide-eyed as he said, "It’s okay, but I do have a question though. Is there _anything_ you guys don’t share?"

JC chuckled as Justin grinned at Mike and said, "Yeah. Josh."

JC added, "And Justin."

Lance laughed and finished, "And that’s about it, really. We’ve lived together on a bus for so long that there’s not a whole lot we don’t know about each other. Well, except maybe for our sex lives, but we’re wading through that pretty fast now. I figure in a month there won’t be anything left to learn about each other."

JC grinned. "I give it a week, myself. If we haven’t talked about it or seen it by the time we leave Sunday, then a couple of days on the bus will take care of it."

Justin chuckled, nodding as Lance grinned at JC and said, "Well, since you’re usually the one changing the subject, you’re probably right."

JC smirked at him. "Of course I am, I’m always right."

Justin laughed. "Unless you’re left, then all bets are off."

Lance just chuckled, shaking his head.

 

 


	36. Chapter 36

 

~~~~36~~~~

 

The room was quiet for a few minutes then until JC suddenly leaned forward to grab Justin’s bag off the table, unable to take the silence anymore. He looked across the table at Mike as he asked, "What kind of music do you guys listen to?"

Mike smiled. "Well, Charlie listens mostly to oldies and beach music, but I like just about everything."

Charlie spoke then as he re-entered the room, looking a little sheepish and still a bit red-faced. "Mike is trying to be nice. He listens to whatever is playing, but his favorite is punk rock."

Charlie crossed the room to sit back down by Mike as the tall blond said, "They call it alternative rock now, babe. I do have some taste, and the stuff they call punk now is pretty much tasteless."

Lance laughed and Justin grinned and asked, "How in the world did you two start listening to us, then? We’re about as far from punk – sorry, _alternative_ – rock as you can get."

JC rested the backpack in his lap, momentarily forgetting what he was after as he listened to the conversation. He loved talking music.

Mike smiled. "We first heard you guys way back when you were doing your first US tour. Kelsey and some of our other friends were raving over your music and having fits about the rumors that JC might be gay, which made me curious about y’all. When Kelsey taped the ‘ _Here We Go_ ’ special, I borrowed it and got Charlie to watch it with me for an unbiased opinion. I was pretty much hooked by the time I saw you guys do ‘ _I Drive Myself Crazy_ ’, but the ‘ _You Drive Me Crazy_ ’ video clinched it.” Mike grinned impishly. “Oh, and I liked the music too."

Charlie nodded, chuckling. "After I saw ‘ _You Drive Me Crazy_ ’ – which was a hilarious video – I even liked you guys. Any group that would dress up in drag for a laugh has my vote, even if JC was the only one who could really handle heels."

JC grinned. "The video you guys saw was the fiftieth take or so, you should have seen the first few when the producer put us _all_ in the heels! Justin did okay with the walking and even the kick as long as he had something to hold on to – his balance was pretty good even back then – and Scoop managed to walk in them at least, but Chris and Joey were risking life and limb at every step, and their dresses died violent deaths at least twice each." JC chuckled. "We wound up in that pool at least twenty times the first day, and had to wait for the makup to be re-done and the clothes to be dried so we could do it all over again. They finally let them wear flats."

Lance laughed, nodding. "And they tried making Juppy wear a dress too, but he refused. The things Josh and I had to go through for those dresses they put us in were almost more than the video was worth!"

Justin grinned at Mike and Charlie. "All I had to do was put on the clothes and wig, but they made Chris and Joey wax their chests and legs. Josh and Lance had to wax their legs _and_ their pits because of their dresses, and had to wear thongs."

Mike laughed and Charlie chuckled, shaking his head and wondering if there was anything these guys wouldn’t do.

"And the makeup, don’t forget that," JC added, making a face. "Foundation and blush and lipstick and funky little fake eyelashes that kept falling off."

Lance nodded. "And the _pantyhose_. I think we went through a whole case that week learning to put them on without ruining the damned things."

Charlie grinned. "Now for the real question that’s been burning in your fans’ minds for years. Did you guys _enjoy_ dressing up in drag?"

Lance snorted and made a face. "It was better than having my wisdom teeth pulled, but not by much. I prefer guys, but that does _not_ mean I would rather be a girl."

Charlie and Mike laughed as Justin said, "I didn’t mind it, really. Some of the stuff they tell us to wear now is just as bad, and not nearly as comfortable. The worst part was the heels." He looked at JC expectantly.

JC looked thoughtful, and then shrugged and grinned. "I thought it was a lot of fun." He paused a second and then added, "Better than the photo shoots Lou used to make us do dressed like two-dollar rent boys straight off Hollywood Boulevard."

Justin raised an eyebrow. "Rent boys?"

Charlie and Mike looked at Justin, both surprised that he didn’t know what that meant.

Lance chuckled softly, shaking his head and thinking they had done too good a job of sheltering Justin from some things. Justin had always been the baby of the group, and they’d all worked hard to make sure he wasn’t exposed to a lot of the baser side of the music business, and life in general for that matter.

JC made a face. "Gay hookers, baby. The cheapest kind who blow guys in their cars."

"I didn’t realize it was _that_ bad," Justin said then, wrinkling his nose and sounding disgusted.

Lance sighed and nodded as JC said, "It was, Jup, take our word for it."

Lance looked at Mike and Charlie after a moment and changed the subject. "How do you two handle your different tastes in music? I’d think it would be kind of hard to find a middle ground between beach music and alternative rock."

Charlie chuckled as Mike grinned at Lance and said, "We listen to beach music, or to you guys, or maybe the local soft rock station. I meant it when I said I listen to everything, so not listening to the headbangin’ stuff doesn’t bother me much."

JC smiled. "I listen to just about anything too, but I’ve had to make some adjustments over the years. For instance, I’m not really into much rap unless it’s older stuff, but Justin really likes it. I’ve found half a dozen rappers he likes that I like too, and we both like the music the other guys listen to, so the five of us have always got a common ground in music." JC paused then, tilting his head to the side questioningly as he asked, "Do you miss listening to the hard stuff?"

Charlie looked thoughtful, but Mike shook his head and smiled. "No, not really. Being with Charlie is worth it, I think."

Charlie frowned, looking at Mike as he said, "I don’t expect you to give up listening to your music to be with me. I don’t mind listening to it with you."

Mike just smiled. "It’s okay, I really don’t mind. I like your music too, I can live without the hard stuff."

Charlie was still frowning. "But the point is I don’t _want_ you to live without it. I know how you enjoy listening to that stuff."

Justin spoke up then, asking, "Aren’t there any punk groups you like, Charlie? There’s a big variety out there, surely you’ve heard _something_ you liked."

Charlie looked over at Justin, thinking, then finally grinned wryly. "Well, yeah, there are songs I’ve heard I liked, but I couldn’t tell you who did them to save my life."

Justin and JC both grinned at that as Lance chuckled and said, "Name the song or some of the lyrics and our music encyclopedias here," he gestured to JC and Justin, "can tell you who did it."

Charlie raised his eyebrows at that, looking thoughtful, but Mike grinned and said, "’ _Best Imitation Of Myself_ _’_."

"Dude, Ben Folds," Justin said immediately, grinning. "He’s cool, real nice guy. I like his stuff, before and after he was with the Five. We have all of his CDs."

JC nodded, also grinning, and Mike looked impressed.

Charlie grinned. "Okay, there’s this song I really like that I’ve only heard on the radio a few times, and I’ve never been able to find out who did it. I don’t know the name or even if it’s really punk, but I can tell you some of the lyrics," he paused, running over the lyrics in his head, then went on, " _’_ _I_ _’_ _ve been with you such a long time, you_ _’_ _re my sunshine and I want you to know, that my feelings are true, that I really love you, you_ _’_ _re my best friend._ ’"

Justin and JC both grinned and said in unision, "Queen!"

Lance laughed, nodding. "I even knew that one, but mostly because Josh loves it and we’ve all heard it a thousand times."

Charlie’s eyes widened as he exclaimed, "You have it?!"

JC nodded, grinning. "Yup! I’ve got a CD of the album it was on, and I’ve got just that song on three other CDs Chris and I have made, and Chris has the original vinyl LP."

Justin grinned and added, "And I’ll make you a copy of the album when we get the buses back, it won’t take but a few minutes. That’s a really good record, everyone should have a copy."

Charlie grinned. "Thanks, I’d really appreciate it!"

JC grinned, pleased. "No problem, we’re always burning CDs. Now, next song."

Charlie cocked his head sideways, thinking a moment. "Okay, there’s one that goes ‘ _I don_ _’_ _t wanna waste my time and become another casualty of society. I_ _’_ _ll never fall in line, become another victim of your conformity, and back down_.’"

Mike laughed and spoke almost as soon as he finished. "I know that one, that’s Sum 41. I like those guys, they’re fun."

Justin and JC both nodded, grinning. "Yeah," JC said, "I have a lot of their music, they’re great to dance to."

Mike’s eyes widened a little bit. "You _dance_ to Sum 41?! Not headbang or pogo?"

JC grinned, nodding as Justin laughed.

"Josh dances to anything,” Lance said with a chuckle, “and makes it look easy, too."

JC remembered finally what he’d been after in Justin’s backpack and looked across the table at Mike and Charlie as he said, "Not to change the subject or anything, but will you guys mind buying a few things for us while we’re out? There’s almost always something I see in a mall that I want but I can’t get because if the cashier recognized me buying it I’d be in deep kimchee."

Lance and Justin both nodded, knowing they would probably all run into that.

"We don’t mind at all,” Charlie answered immediately, smiling. “Just let us know."

JC grinned and unzipped the outer pocket on the backpack in his lap to fish out his wallet, and then pulled a credit card out of it. "Thanks, we really appreciate it!" He tossed the black leather wallet across the table then and Charlie automatically caught it, looking surprised as JC tucked the credit card into an ugly green wallet and went on, "There’s several hundred in there, that ought to cover anything I want that I can’t buy myself, and if you guys find anything you want or need just let us know and we’ll take care of it, okay?"

JC put the green wallet away and looked up to see Charlie looking at JC’s wallet like it might bite him. "You trust us with that much cash?"

JC laughed. "I trust you with something worth a whole lot more to me, why shouldn’t I trust you with money, too?"

Justin nodded, grinning. "Yeah Charlie, it’s just little pieces of paper with pictures of dead guys on’em. We can get more at anytime we need it."

Lance chuckled at that, shaking his head and smiling. "Which is why JC is famous for giving the girls at Sonic a twenty dollar tip just for making his burger the way he wanted it, and Justin has _lost_ several thousand dollars in the last six months."

Mike’s eyes went big and Charlie stared at Lance as he repeated, "Lost?"

Lance nodded. "Yep. He loses his wallet every time he turns around, usually with at least a couple hundred dollars in it. He lost the green one JC just had over a month ago, and it has almost a thousand in it. I found it while I was looking for his sunglasses this morning, it was behind JC’s bunk."

Justin and JC both looked surprised at that and Justin asked, "How did it get there?!"

The door to Chris, Joey, and Lance’s room opened then, and Chris walked out carrying a biker jacket and looking smug.

Lance snorted. "How should I know? It’s not my wallet! _Mine_ is in my pocket, where it belongs."

Mike laughed at that and Chris said, "Juppy needs to put his wallet on a chain like mine, then he wouldn’t lose it anymore. Josh would never let him lose that coat."

JC chuckled, nodding, and Lance looked over at Chris, laughing at the look on his face. "I see you enjoyed yourself sweetheart, where’s Joe?"

Chris grinned and nodded, flopping down in the empty chair next to Lance. "Looking for his shoes."

Lance snorted softly. "What did you do with them?"

Chris’ grin got a little wider. "Pitched them. They’re probably under the dresser or something."

"No," Joey called from the door to their room as he walked out carrying his shoes, "one was under the bed and the other was out on the balcony."

Charlie’s eyes went a little wide at that, but Mike just grinned as JC and Justin both laughed.

"You shouldn’t have let him take them off, Joe. You know how Chris is with throwing things," Lance said with a chuckle.

Joey sat down next to Lance to put on his shoes, grinning. "I was being fairly well distracted at the time, babe, or I wouldn’t have."

Chris gave Lance a wicked grin.

Lance chuckled. "Is _that_ what they’re calling it now?"

Chris’ brown eyes twinkled with mischief. "He’s trying to be nice, he didn’t want to find out if red goes with that shirt JC is wearing." JC stuck his tongue out at Chris, who grinned and said, "Is that an invitation, Joshua?"

JC snorted as Justin smirked at Chris and said, "No, old man, you couldn’t handle him."

Chris looked affronted but Lance just laughed and gave Justin a measuring look. "I think you underestimate our Critter, he keeps up with me _and_ Joe."

Charlie blushed then as Joey grinned and nodded, adding, "Both at once, even."

Mike, JC, and Justin laughed.

Chris grinned at Lance and Joey, pleased and smug. "Thanks."

"No problem, sweetheart," Lance said with a grin for Chris, then he looked back over at Charlie and said, "Now back to music before we get sidetracked any further. Are there any other alternative type songs you’ve heard that you liked?"

Charlie nodded, grateful for the change in subject. "Yeah, there’s this one that’s pretty good that starts out, ‘ _It took a cup of coffee to prove that you don_ _’_ _t love me_ _’_."

JC’s grin faded as he said, "’ _Cup Of Coffee_ ’ by Garbage. I have the CD, it’s a really good song even if it is a little depressing."

Charlie nodded, agreeing completely as Justin looked at JC, surprised. "I don’t think I’ve heard that one."

JC smiled crookedly at Justin. "That’s because I usually skip it when I’m with you, baby. It hit a little too close to things I was afraid to say."

Justin looked curious and asked, "How so?"

JC’s smile turned wry. "Well, the last verse goes like this," JC paused a moment, closing his eyes before he sang softly, "‘ _You left behind some clothes, my belly somersaults when I pick them off the floor. My friends all say they_ _’_ _re worried, I_ _’_ _m looking far too skinny... I stopped returning all their calls. And no, of course we can_ _’_ _t be friends, not while I_ _’_ _m still so obsessed, I want to ask where I went wrong, but I don_ _’_ _t say anything at all..._ ’" JC paused, then opened his eyes and said, "And then she says ‘ _It took a cup of coffee, to prove that you don_ _’_ _t love me._ ’"

Justin had been frowning since the second line, and when JC finished he immediately said quietly, "I don’t know how I missed how unhappy you were, Josh."

JC smiled at Justin and reached to take his hand. "Baby, don’t worry about it, it’s over now. Nothing but memories, and even the bad ones can’t hurt me now that I have you."

Justin sighed and squeezed JC’s hand. "I still feel like I should have known you were that depressed."

Lance said quietly, "You did, Justin, you knew there was something wrong just like we did, you just didn’t know what." Lance paused a moment and then went on, "Josh is right though, the past is just that. We’ve all said and done things we regret or have something we wish we could go back and do over, but we can’t. We just have to go on from here and be happy together."

Chris nodded. "At least you never hurt him on purpose, Justin. You couldn’t and we all know it, and that says a lot about how much you love him."

Lance frowned at Chris as Joey said warningly, "Christopher..."

Chris looked at him in surprise and when he saw Joey’s face he quickly said, "I’m just trying to make a point for the kid, Joe! I’m not gonna beat myself up over it anymore, I promise."

Joey still looked a little skeptical. "You’d better not, Critter, or we’ll have to kick your ass."

Lance nodded, smiling slightly as JC smiled at Justin and said, "The same thing goes for you, Justin. I’m sure they’ll help me hold you down and tickle some sense into you."

Justin gave him a wry little grin. "Okay, okay. I’ll be good." He looked over at Charlie and said, "Were there any more songs you wanted to know?"

Charlie nodded, wanting to ask what Chris had done but not quite having the courage to do so. "There’s this one song, it’s not really alternative I don’t think, but it’s a piano solo and starts out ‘ _You know I_ _’_ _m a dreamer, but my heart_ _’_ _s of gold_ _’_ \--"

JC and Justin both grinned and picked it up, singing in perfect harmony with each other, " _’_ _I had to run away high, so I wouldn_ _’_ _t come home low. Just when things went right, doesn_ _’_ _t mean they were always wrong, just take this song, and you_ _’_ _ll never be, left all alone. Take me to your heart, feel me in your bones, just one more night and I_ _’_ _m coming off this long and winding road... I_ _’_ _m on my way, I_ _’_ _m on my way, home sweet home_.’"

Charlie grinned at them, nodding. “That’s it!”

"It’s almost scary the way you two do that,” Chris said, amused.

Joey and Lance both laughed, but JC just grinned at Chris then looked at Charlie as he said, "That’s a great one by Motley Crue. It’s not alternative though, you’re right. It’s classic heavy metal."

Chris chuckled. "And only our dear Joshua would think there’s a difference between one kind of heavy metal and another."

Mike and Justin laughed as JC said, "Hey, there’s a big difference! Heavy metal before ninety-five or so was mostly good music with actual lyrical quality to it, great guitar and piano solos and kickin’ backbeats. Most of the new junk they call metal is just noise."

Lance chuckled, shaking his head, but Joey nodded. "I know what you mean, Josh. I like the older metal bands like the Crue, AC/DC, Poison, and Whitesnake, but the new groups are just playing noise."

Chris snorted. "How does that song go? ‘ _Rock and roll ain_ _’_ _t noise pollution, rock and roll is just rock and roll_.’"

Joey grinned. "Exactly! Slipknot doesn’t play rock and roll, they play noise."

Mike, JC, Justin, and Lance laughed at that, but Chris just rolled his eyes. "Joe-bear, _they_ think it’s rock and roll, that’s means it’s not just noise."

Joey snorted and shook his head. "Noooo, that just means they’re _idiots_."

Everyone but Chris laughed again and Chris looked at Joey for a second, trying to think of a way to refute that. It wasn’t easy to do, mostly because he agreed with Joey, and finally he laughed. "Okay, so they’re noisy idiots. Happy now?"

Joey grinned and nodded as Charlie chuckled at Chris’ logic.

Mike grinned across the table at JC and Justin. "I bet I can stump you guys with one."

JC and Justin both grinned at him and Justin said, "Bring it on!"

"‘ _We_ _’_ _ve got it simple_ _‘_ _cause we_ _’_ _ve got a band, and we_ _’_ _ve got cymbals in the band_ ’," Mike said, careful not to let his voice hint at the tune the words went with.

Justin looked lost but JC grinned and exclaimed, "Oh, _real_ punk music! Umm, I’ve got that CD, it’s not NoFX or Save Ferris... Phish!"

Mike looked impressed. "Wow. You _are_ good."

JC grinned at Mike as Justin smirked and said, "And music isn’t what he’s best at, I promise."

JC blushed then as Lance chuckled. "Y’know, Justin, I think you like embarrassing him."

Justin grinned. "Josh looks good in red."

JC’s eyes went big and he swatted Justin’s shoulder as he exclaimed, "You—!" JC broke off and made an annoyed noise, then said, "Lance isn’t the only one who can make somebody sleep on the couch, y’know."

Chris and Joey laughed at that as Lance and Mike watched with nearly identical grins, both wondering how Justin would answer that one. Charlie watched interestedly too, hoping for pointers on how to handle Mike. The tall blond was learning way too much from the guys already, and a goodly bit of it wasn’t quite what Charlie wanted him to.

Justin pouted. "But Josh..."

JC snorted, still looking fairly annoyed. "Don’t ‘but Josh’ me, Justin, I’m serious. Embarrassing me because you weren’t thinking is one thing, but if I get the feeling you did it on purpose I’ll have to do something about it."

Lance watched, wondering if JC was really that upset about it or if he was just trying to make Justin really think about what he’d been doing. Knowing JC he’d have to say the latter, but looking at his face Lance wasn’t completely sure.

"I don’t, babe," Justin said, looking sheepish. "It’s just that it’s fun to tease you, and you blush so easy..."

JC pursed his lips and gave Justin a firm look that Chris, Joey, and Lance knew well from years of JC making Justin behave when nobody else could. "Baby, I wouldn’t embarrass you on purpose, no matter how cute you are when you blush."

Justin flinched and looked down at his lap, truly contrite. "I’m sorry, Josh, really. I just don’t think I guess."

JC sighed. "I know, baby. You’re almost as bad as Chris about saying whatever runs through your head."

Chris snorted but didn’t argue. Justin looked up at JC without lifting his head, hoping JC was smiling, but quickly looked back down when he saw JC’s face.

JC’s lips twitched, trying not to smile, and Lance hid a grin behind his hand, thinking JC knew exactly how completely he had Justin wrapped around his finger. Lance’s eyes sparkled with suppressed laughter as he thought about exactly what else JC’d had Justin wrapped around, figuring that the threat of sleeping on the couch would keep Justin in line the way nothing else could.

JC let the silence drag on for a moment longer and then said, "Would you at least try to think before you speak? Please?"

Justin looked up quickly, nodding and looking completely sincere, and Lance wondered if Justin would notice that JC’s eyes weren’t nearly as serious as the rest of his face. "I’ll try, Josh, I promise," Justin said.

JC smiled at him finally then. "That’s all I ask, baby."

Justin smiled back, immediately happier now that JC didn’t look so serious, and Lance grinned. JC’s years of controlling Justin for them with just a look or a few well-chosen words had pretty much ended when JC stopped noticing when Justin acted up, but JC had just proven he definitely hadn’t forgotten how to handle him.

 

 


	37. Chapter 37

 

~~~~37~~~~

 

Chris spoke up after a few minutes of silence, changing the subject. "Lance, I thought we were in a hurry to go? It’s been almost an hour since you went to tell Lonnie, hasn’t it?"

Lance looked at his watch and snorted. "An hour and twenty minutes. Lonnie said he’d come for us when he was ready to go, something about having Dre put gas in their truck first."

Chris made a face. "More like Lonnie wants to give some of his guys time to get over to the mall before we leave so they can scope the place out."

Lance chuckled, nodding. "Probably."

"Where are we gonna go for supper tonight?" Justin asked then, looking at Lance.

Lance shrugged. "I thought we would stay in. We’ve got leftover Chinese and all the food Joe’s mom sent us, and there’s room service or pizza delivery if you don’t want any of that."

Justin grinned. "Sounds great to me, if we stay in I don’t have to be quite so careful."

JC chuckled, nodding his head as Chris grinned wickedly at Lance and said, "If we stay in, none of us have to be good."

Lance winked at him, grinning. "That was the whole idea, sweetheart."

Joey laughed. "Y’know, babe, if you keep encouraging him he’s gonna start draggin’ _you_ off for a quickie whenever he gets half a chance."

Lance grinned at Joey. "Yeah... And?"

Joey just snorted, his twinkling eyes giving away the fact he was amused.

"You all heard him!" Chris crowed, obviously delighted. "That was as good as giving me permission!"

Lance looked over at Chris, still grinning. "I’ll drag you off into a quiet corner whenever I feel like it too, Critter."

Chris smirked. "Is that a threat, baby boy?"

Lance’s grin turned a little predatory. "More like a promise, sweetheart."

Joey chuckled. "If you plan to do anything more than kiss him, you’d better make sure you’re packing. Chris _never_ is."

Chris stuck his tongue out at Joey, who just grinned at him.

"I may not have learned a whole lot in my three months in the Boy Scouts, Joe, but ‘always be prepared’ stuck with me as being good advice." Lance grinned at them both and patted his pocket.

JC chuckled and looked at Justin as he said, "That’s at least four tubes in less than a day. Those three _are_ gonna use up that whole box this week, I’d bet on it."

Justin grinned and nodded. "Yup."

Lance raised an eyebrow. "What do you wanna bet?"

Justin looked over at Lance and grinned as JC laughed and asked, "Why would you want to? The only way you could win is not to use it all."

Lance looked surprised, then laughed. "You’re right, I guess I’d rather be predictable."

Charlie and Mike were still watching them talk, Mike grinning as Charlie blushed and tried to pretend he wasn’t listening just as closely as Mike.

Chris smirked. "And the one in Joey’s pocket makes six tubes, Josh, not four."

JC laughed, shaking his head. "I shouldn’t encourage you, but I have got to ask. How in the world are you three going through the stuff that fast? Even considering there’s three of you, I wouldn’t think you could go through four tubes of lube – not counting the ones in your pockets – in less than a day."

Chris grinned. "I wouldn’t think our dear, shy, Joshua could ask that question!"

JC snorted, then grinned at Chris. "Just figure that curiosity makes me almost as shameless Justin and answer the question."

Justin laughed at that as Lance chuckled and said, "Well, first off there’s the fact we have more sex than you guys have—"

Joey snorted. "Don’t you mean three times as much, since there are three of us?"

The guys had pretty much forgotten that Mike and Charlie were still sitting there listening and were talking like they would if they were alone, leaving Charlie completely red-faced and hoping they would change the subject soon while Mike just grinned and listened.

Chris shook his head, grinning. "No, Joe, these are the two who thought five times in one night was normal, remember?"

Mike’s eyebrows went up at that, looking at JC and Justin like someone had just told him they could fly or something, but nobody noticed him because they were too busy talking.

Joey laughed. "Point taken. Go on Scoop."

Lance snorted. "As I was saying, more sex, and sex in the shower—"

"Which explains why Chris is suddenly taking showers in the morning," Justin interjected with a grin.

"— which takes more lube because it’s water soluble," Lance went on as if Justin hadn’t said anything, "and the fact Chris wasted almost a whole tube because he’s fascinated by the stuff—"

"Hey, that mint was all _tingly_!" Chris interrupted, grinning.

JC and Justin both laughed but Lance ignored them all and kept going, "— and then there’s the fact Joey learned something new last night."

JC grinned at Joey and asked, "What?"

Joey smirked and just looked at Lance, waiting for him to answer since he was the one doing all the talking.

Lance grinned back at Joey and then looked at JC. "Remember your discussion with Chris last night?" JC nodded. "Well, there was something you’ve done once, and Chris and I both had done before – just not together – but Joey had never tried it."

JC looked thoughtful a minute, then his eyes went wide. "You’re kidding."

Justin was still trying to figure out which thing they’d discussed – and there had been a lot – that Joey hadn’t done before as Lance laughed and said, "No, I’m not."

Chris smirked. "It was lots of fun too, Josh. You oughta teach Juppy how."

Justin looked expectantly at JC, who turned red and shook his head vehemently. "Oh no, we’re _not_ going there."

Chris snorted and then smirked at JC. "You go there all the time, don’t try to deny it."

Justin was listening to them attentively, still not exactly sure what they were talking about and trying to figure it out as JC turned even redder and said, "But not like that. I don’t see the appeal anyway, I didn’t think it was much fun."

Lance’s eyebrows went up at that. "It should have been. Maybe Tony just didn’t know what he was doing."

JC made a face. "Well, it wasn’t. I’m not into pain."

Chris frowned. "Tony definitely didn’t know what he was doing, Josh. Even kinky sex isn’t supposed to hurt."

Mike’s widened at that, wondering who Tony was as Charlie looked studiously at his lap and tried to convince himself that he couldn’t hear the five multi-millionaire pop stars, men he’d idolized more than a little for years, discussing not just gay sex but _kinky_ gay sex.

Justin finally couldn’t stand it anymore and blurted, "What are you guys talking about?!"

Lance looked at him appraisingly. "If you want to know and Josh doesn’t mind, I’ll tell you."

Justin looked at JC questioningly, making JC give Lance a dirty look. "You don’t play fair, you know that, right?" Lance gave him a slightly sheepish smile and a little shrug, then JC looked back at Justin and stood as he said, "Come with me and I’ll explain, okay baby?"

Justin nodded and stood to follow JC into their bedroom.

Chris watched them go in and shut the door before he looked at Lance. "Tony had better hope I’m in a really good mood by the time we get to California."

Joey nodded, frowning, and Mike was surprised to see that Lance looked pretty angry as he said, "Tony Lucca better keep his fairy ass out of my sight, or I’m gonna have to kick it for him. There is no excuse for some of the things he’s done to Josh."

Chris and Joey both nodded, agreeing completely.

"Umm... Can I ask something?" Mike asked hesitantly after a minute, making Charlie, Lance, Joey, and Chris all look at him.

"Sure," Lance said, "we’ll answer if we can, but there are some things that aren’t ours to tell."

Mike nodded. "I understand." He paused a moment, chewing on his lower lip and debating actually asking what he wanted to know, then blurted, "Are you three in love with JC?"

Charlie’s eyes widened in shock. "Michael! You can’t ask them something like that!

"No, it’s alright," Lance said. "I meant it when I said you two could ask us anything." Lance looked at Joey and then at Chris before he looked back over at Charlie and Mike and said, "I can’t speak for Chris and Joe, but yeah, I love him. Maybe not the way Justin does or the way I love Joe and Chris, but I do love him."

Chris nodded, adding, "You can’t know Josh like we do and not love him. He’s the most beautiful guy you’ll ever meet, inside and out."

Joey nodded, not bothering to try and explain how he felt, partially because he’d never dwelled on it. JC and Justin needed each other and as far as Joey was concerned that made them both off limits.

Mike was about to ask something else when JC and Justin came back out of their room, and he quickly shut his mouth when he saw that JC was looking unhappy while Justin was obviously mad. The two men crossed the room and sat back down at the table in silence, not looking at each other or anyone else.

"Josh, what’s wrong?" Lance finally asked, concerned after a minute of watching JC look at his hands while Justin scowled at the tabletop. Justin had taken everything else JC had admitted doing with Tony so well that Lance was more than a little surprised to see him take something badly.

JC sighed and looked over at Lance. "Justin is a little unhappy."

Justin looked up at JC then, his dark blue eyes almost black with anger. "Fuck that, I’m royally pissed!"

JC flinched and looked back down at his lap. "Baby, he didn’t hurt me on purpose."

Justin snorted. "That’s what you said when you admitted that he’s given you hell over the years trying to get you to quit the group, and that he’s fucking _hit you_ a _lot_ more than once, and even _cracked_ your _ribs_. You can’t hit someone that hard _accidentally_ , Joshua. It’s just not possible."

JC hunched his shoulders a bit more at each thing Justin pointed out, looking down at his hands and twisting his fingers while Justin went on. "He’s a manipulative bastard, and next time I see him I’m going to kick that motherfucker right in the balls. And then I think I just might _feed them_ to the sadistic son of a bitch!"

Lance frowned slightly, wondering what Tony had done to JC to make Justin that mad. Justin cussed some – he’d hung around Chris and Joey too much not to – but he usually tried hard to watch it around JC because he knew JC didn’t like it.

JC looked up then to meet Justin’s still-blazing eyes, obviously very upset. "Justin, please just forget about it. Tony didn’t hurt me very often, and I don’t think he really meant to most of the time..." JC trailed off at the way Justin’s eyes darkened even further, realizing he’d just as much as admitted Tony did hurt him on purpose sometimes. JC was suddenly quite sure that saying more would just make Justin more upset, even if he could come up with a good excuse for Tony while Justin was staring at him like that. He couldn’t remember a time he’d ever seen Justin so angry.

Justin spoke up a long moment after JC had trailed off, his voice hard even though he made an effort to speak calmly. "He should never have hurt you to begin with. _Anybody_ who has known you as long as he has _knows_ that you don’t like pain, and that you would do anything for a friend. He took advantage of you, Joshua." JC looked back down at his lap then, biting his lip and trying not to cry as Justin added more softly, "And he knew he was doing it." Justin watched him for a moment, his eyes slowly going from hard and angry to soft and sad, then reached for JC and said, "Josh, baby, come here."

JC looked up at Justin a second, his eyes shining, then stood and moved towards him, letting Justin pull him into his lap so that JC’s back was the the others. Justin wrapped both arms around him, just holding him close with his lips against JC’s hair as he rubbed his back soothingly with one hand.

After just holding him for a long moment Justin finally said softly, "I’m sorry, sweetheart. I know how it upsets you when I get mad. I just can’t help it when I think of him hurting you, baby. I love you too much."

Lance spoke up then, looking calm as he quietly said, "Justin, I already told you that’s impossible, you can’t love Josh too much. You’re not the only one that’s pissed at Lucca, I promise, but all that getting mad now is going to do is upset Josh more. You need to calm down."

Charlie just sat silently and watched JC and Justin, trying to absorb everything that was going on while Mike looked at Lance, remembering how pissed he’d looked just a few minutes before and wondering how Lance could hide it so well.

Justin looked over at Lance, Joey and Chris, his eyes full of pain that he didn’t want JC to see. "I know Scoop, I’m trying."

Lance smiled encouragingly at Justin, and then looked over at Chris in surprise when the older man spoke.

"Josh?" Chris asked, looking at Justin and ignoring the others.

There was silence for a moment as Chris and Justin looked at each other, then JC said quietly, "Yeah?"

"What would you do if somebody had hurt Justin like Tony has hurt you?" Chris asked, looking into Justin’s eyes, sure he knew exactly what the reaction would be.

JC was quiet a long moment, thinking about all the things Tony had done over the years, and he sounded wry as he finally said, "I’d rip out his heart and feed it to him. In little bitty pieces."

Justin managed a chuckle, giving Chris a grateful look. "Then you know exactly how I feel, babe."

JC nodded against Justin’s shoulder and then lifted his head to look at Justin, giving him a tiny little shadow of a smile. "I guess I do, and I know I wouldn’t want it to happen again either..." JC trailed off a moment, then asked, "How about we _both_ agree not to see Tony again?"

Lance had to admire JC’s inspiration, thinking that might be the only way to keep Justin from hunting Tony down and doing the man some serious harm.

Justin looked surprised and said, "Josh, he’s one of your oldest friends. Are you sure?"

JC nodded. "Yeah, I am. I’ve told myself for years he didn’t mean to, but even I didn’t quite believe it. It’s like your mom has told us a thousand times, ‘Once is an accident and twice could be stupidity, but the third time it’s intentional.’ For the last few years I’ve been feeling so guilty for fucking around with him that when he hurt me I felt almost like I deserved it." JC paused and then said quietly, "Even though he always apologized, Tony has hurt me a lot more than three times since the first time I let him fuck me, and the last year so he hasn’t even always acted sorry."

Lance was surprised the hear JC say what he’d done with Tony was ‘fucking’, and then Lance remembered how vehement JC had been when he told Chris that he’d never fuck Justin, and he got even more angry. Whatever Tony had done, Lance was beginning to think it had been pretty bad, and that Justin wouldn’t have to hunt Lucca down. Lance was going to do it himself, and take along both of his boyfriends just to make sure they were _really_ thorough.

Chris’ eyes were narrow with anger by the time JC finished speaking, thinking pretty much along the same lines as Lance, only Chris was wondering where to hide the body when he got through with Lucca. After watching for a moment as JC laid his head down on Justin’s shoulder again, Justin stroking his back as he visibly tried to control himself, Chris suddenly said, "You’re not seeing him alone ever again, Joshua."

JC jerked his head up and twisted around in Justin’s lap to look at Chris in surprise as Chris went on.

"I told you years ago when that slimeball Lou was sniffing around you and Justin that I wouldn’t let anyone hurt my friends, and I’ll be damned if I’ll let Lucca do it. If you want to talk to him that’s fine, I know you’ve known him longer than any of us and you care about him, but you’re not doing it alone anymore. I don’t think Justin should be around him – the kid’s too young to be stuck with a murder rap – so Joe, Lance, or I will go with you."

Joey and Lance both nodded because neither of them wanted JC to be alone with Tony any more than Chris did. 

JC smiled softly. "You don’t have to do that, guys. I told Tony the last time I saw him that I wouldn’t be back. If he wants to talk to me, he knows how to write and has my address, otherwise I’m staying away from him."

Justin smiled and gave JC a squeeze. "Thank you."

JC turned the rest of the way so he was sitting sideways in Justin’s lap facing the other three and slipped an arm around Justin’s neck, smiling at him. "You’re welcome, even though I’m not doing it for you." Justin looked surprised then and JC smiled a little wider as he said, "I’m doing this for me. You were right, baby. I’m too good to put up with his shit."

Justin gave JC a sweet smile. "I’m glad you were listening to me."

JC gave Justin an impish little grin. "I _always_ listen to you, baby. I just take my cue from you and ignore the stuff I didn’t want to hear."

Justin finally grinned at that while Joey and Lance chuckled, and Chris managed a smile at that, all of them quite sure Justin had done just that on many an occasion.

JC kissed Justin then while the other five watched, a slow, gentle kiss that was obviously less about desire than it was about how much they loved each other. Lance reached over to take Chris’ hand after watching them a moment, making the older man look at him questioningly as Lance laced their fingers together and smiled at him.

When JC and Justin stopped kissing a few moments later, JC laid his head on Justin’s shoulder again, snuggling comfortably into his embrace and closing his eyes with a soft little smile. He knew they would have to part for the evening pretty soon, but he was happy right where he was and intended to enjoy it while he could. Justin rested his cheek against JC’s hair and closed his eyes too, glad that JC was with him now and would never give Tony the chance to hurt him again.

The other five men at the table were quiet for a little bit as they watched JC and Justin, each of them thinking something different. Lance was glad that JC was finally telling them all the things that he’d been so upset over for the last year, and proud of Justin for taking it all so well. Joey had already decided Steve and a couple of his buddies from back home would be visiting Lucca, and that the guy would be lucky to walk again afterwards. Chris was trying not to think about Lucca because he knew he would just get madder and Lance was right, that would just upset JC more, so he was considering the question Mike had asked them and wondering if he just loved JC and Justin or if he was in love with them and not sure he could really tell the difference anymore.

Charlie was thinking about all the guys had said and done in the last hour and wondering if there was anything he and Mike wouldn’t know about them by the end of the week. Mike just watched JC’s smiling face with a little smile of his own, thinking about how right the two of them looked together and wishing they didn’t ever have to hide.

It might have been as little as five or as much as fifteen minutes later when Lonnie walked in, giving JC a quick grin when he saw him lift his head off Justin’s shoulder to smile at him. "Sorry about the delay, but we’re ready to go now boss," Lonnie said then, giving Lance a wry grin. "I wanted James, Mark, and Scott to go check the place out before we got there and talk to mall security, and they got lost."

Lance chuckled and stood. "I figured that it was something like that." Lance glanced at his watch, then looked at the others and said, "C’mon guys, we’re gonna be out until late as it is, it’s already five thirty."

Lance looked around as the others stood and got their things, a slight frown growing on his face.

Lonnie looked amused. "If you’re looking for your bag, boss, you left it in the room we’re using for an office. Dre has it."

Lance gave Lonnie a quick grin. "Am I that easy for you to read, Lonnie?"

Lonnie chuckled and nodded, starting for the door. "Like a book, boss."

Lance chuckled too and followed Lonnie out into the hall with Joey, Chris, JC, and Justin right behind him and Mike and Charlie bringing up the rear.

 

 


	38. Chapter 38

 

~~~~38~~~~

 

Lance trudged down the hallway towards their room several long hours after they’d left, following JC and Mike and glad their trip to the mall was finally over with. Chris, Justin, and JC had all gone crazy at the mall just like Joey and Lance had known they would, and they’d dragged everyone else along for the ride.

The three shopaholics had been in every single store, even the Victoria’s Secret, which JC had said was lots of fun, making Lance and Mike really wonder about him considering the fact he’d thought dressing up in drag for that video was fun too. Four electronics/media stores, the K-Mart, the JC Penney, around fifteen little hole-in-the-wall stores and one pizza parlor – which Lance had suggested just to get a chance to sit down for a little while – later, they were done and Lance was happy they could just relax the rest of the evening, such as it was.

All they had to do was put away the things they’d bought, and then Lance intended to flop down on the couch and veg for a little while with Joey. Lance hadn’t bought much besides three pairs of jeans, a couple of shirts and a few things from the electronics stores, and Joey hadn’t bought much either, just a few things for Brianna, a couple of books and two t-shirts.

Justin had bought clothes of course, and CDs, DVDs, and several games for the Playstation. He’d bought Britney a couple of things too – Lance had known letting him go in Victoria’s Secret with Chris and JC was a bad idea – a t-shirt for Wade that Justin thought was just too funny considering what he knew of Wade’s sex life, and two or three things Britney might actually wear in public. Justin loved MailBoxes Etc, all he had to do was hand them the stuff and, after a quick call to Brit’s secretary, an address for ‘Sassy Pearson’ and he didn’t have to worry with packing it up himself.

JC had bought more clothes including a few things Lance had already decided he could wear once or twice before he ‘lost’ them, a dozen CDs and more DVDs, including a boxed set he’d had Mike buy for him while they were in Borders and wouldn’t show anyone, which made Lance figure it was probably a present. JC had also bought some clothes for Brit including three oversized t-shirts, or at least Lance _hoped_ they were for Britney. They had slogans on them like ‘ _My Shoes Cost As Much As Your Car_ _’_ , ‘ _My Boyfriend Can Kick Your Ass_ ’, and ‘ _Don_ _’_ _t Make Me Use My Pepper Spray, Dork_ ’, so Lance truly hoped JC didn’t think they’d let him wear them in public. Lance had already decided that if JC actually tried to wear the rainbow tye-dyed halter top JC had found in a little Claire’s-type store that he might have to hurt him, no matter how sweet JC was. Lance could live with rainbow tye-dye, that wasn’t so bad, but being seen with _any_ guy who was wearing a halter-top was way beyond the call of duty in his book.

Chris had bought some of the skater clothes he loved, another wooden bead necklace Lance was sure he’d lose, a pair of Doc Marten boots that Lance couldn’t tell were any different from the pair Chris had left on the bus, two games, half a dozen CDs and a pile of DVDs. To hear Chris tell it the real find of the night had been in a little store Mike knew about though, a shop that was tucked into one corner of the mall and sold vinyl LPs, both new and used. Chris had come out of there crowing over the seven albums and four singles they’d found, mostly from the early eighties, including copy of the single for Dexy’s Midnight Runners’ only hit, ‘ _Come On Eileen_ ’.

Lance thought that Chris was crazy to pay almost two hundred dollars for a little piece of plastic he would never even open – especially since Chris had the song on CD, cassette and vinyl already – but Chris was ecstatic about it because, in his words, "You just do not _find_ unopened singles anymore man, it’s _priceless_!"

After a few attempts, the guys had even managed to convince Mike and Charlie to buy some things just for the fun of it. The two teens had finally relaxed and enjoyed the evening, cutting up and joking with JC, Justin, and Chris as the five of them looked through CDs and DVDs in Borders and then Sam Goodys while Joey and Lance just watched them and laughed.

Lance had bought Mike a nice laptop and all the accessories for it at the little computer store they stopped at a little while later, amazing Mike and then Charlie too when he and JC wandered into the store as they were checking out. When Lance told them on the way out of the store that their cell phones and credit cards were on the way and would be there in a day or two, the two teens were floored.

Mike and Charlie were much too quiet after that until Chris dragged them into the record store with JC and Justin to help him look for ‘anything cool’, prompting Mike to find Chris a copy of the ‘ _North To Alaska_ ’ forty-five by Johnny Horton. Everyone thought that was hilarious including Chris, who bought the single after he told Mike he had good taste in honky tonk music. Mike had asked him if that was supposed to be a good thing then and everyone laughed, including the guy who ran the store.

Lance looked up when the guys in front of him stopped and turned to look at him, and then realized he still had the keycard. He slipped past them to the door – not too surprised when he felt someone pinch his ass as he passed Chris – to unlock it. Lance went inside followed by the other six, and put his bags and backpack on the table before he flopped down in the nearest chair with a sigh. Joey chuckled and patted Lance’s shoulder on his way by to go put his stuff up while Chris piled his bags in the floor nearby and then sat by Lance.

"Babe, we gotta do that again," Chris said, grinning like a fool at Lance. "That was so much fun!"

Lance snorted and gave Chris a level look as JC, Mike, Charlie, and Justin all piled their bags on the table. "We have very different ideas of fun, sweetheart."

JC chuckled and sat down in the chair next to Lance, tired but happy. "C’mon Scoop, it _was_ fun. You enjoyed wandering around in the computer place and in Old Navy, admit it."

Lance looked over at JC for a minute and then gave him a little grin. "Well, yeah, that part was okay."

Justin laughed, sitting next to JC as he opened a can of Mountain Dew. "You had fun in Borders too, standin’ over there with Joe making fun of us for buying cartoons on DVD."

Lance’s grin widened just a little as he admitted, "Yeah, that was okay, too."

Mike and Charlie sat down across the table from JC and Justin then, both grinning as they watched the other four talk.

Chris snorted, grinning. "It was all fun, babe, you just don’t wanna admit it."

Lance made a face. "No, it was _not_ all fun. Most of it was, maybe, considering the fact we hadn’t been in a mall in forever, but there were parts I could have done without. You guys can be pretty embarrassing when you want to be."

Chris chuckled. "You really should have come in Victoria’s with us, there was all _kinds_ of fun stuff in there. You could have helped me and our two fairies here pick out stuff for Brit, since you’re bi too."

Justin grinned at Chris and passed the can he held to JC, who was giving Chris a dirty look for calling him a fairy.

Lance gave Chris a tolerant look. "No, sweetheart, I’m not."

Chris’ eyebrows went up. "I thought you used to date girls."

Lance rolled his eyes. "You didn’t ask me if I used to be bi, you asked if I am now. Big difference."

Chris snorted. "Used-to, schmoozed-to. If you’ve ever had sex with a girl and liked it you’re bi, end of story."

Lance laughed. "Okay, so I guess I was never bi, just curious for a brief time between when I kissed the neighbor girl and when I walked into the guys locker room after a basketball game to gather up their towels and saw Tad Johnson naked." Lance smirked, his eyes twinkling as he added, "Tad was hung almost as good as Joe."

Justin laughed at the shocked look on Chris’ face and JC grinned and said, "Chris, dude, you look like he just told you he was straight!"

Mike and Charlie both laughed then while JC took a long drink out of the can he held.

Joey walked out to sit next to Chris then, grinning. "What are we talking about? Sex again?"

Lance chuckled. "Pretty much, Joe-bear. Chris was just finding out I’m gay."

Joey smirked at Chris. "Didn’t having him screw you into the mattress give you just a _little bit_ of a hint?"

Charlie blushed at that as Mike, Lance, Justin, and JC all started laughing again while Chris spluttered.

"I knew he liked guys, Joe," Chris finally said, giving Joey a dirty look. "I just thought he was bi like us."

Joey chuckled. "Speak for yourself, Critter. Girls are too much trouble, I’m stickin’ to men."

"Literally." Lance grinned wickedly and the added, "And pretty often, too."

Joey grinned back at him and winked.

Charlie turned even redder at that while JC and Justin both laughed.

"Joe! You like girls,” Chris said, shocked. “I know you do, you have a kid!"

Joey smirked. "I like getting laid more though, and girls ain’t got the right equipment."

Lance chuckled. "Good answer, Joe-bear."

Chris looked around the table. "So I’m the only guy in this room who thinks Britney is hot?"

Justin snorted. "Chris, dude, of course Brit’s is hot. We’re gay, not _blind_."

JC drained the last of the Dew he held, then grinned and nodded as he said, "Yeah, but just ‘cause we know she’s pretty doesn’t mean we want her. Gay sex is way too good to mess around with a girl, they aren’t half as much fun." JC turned and tossed the empty can into the box Joey’s mom had sent, which they were using as a trash can since the little hotel one filled up too fast.

Chris said, "Ah-ha! That sounded like the voice of experience talking, Joshua!"

JC grinned at him. "Yeah, so? Everyone makes mistakes."

Lance and Justin laughed as Chris gave JC a dirty look and grumbled, "Well, there goes the ‘ _Baywatch_ ’ marathon."

Joey chuckled. "I’ll still watch it with you, Critter. Watching chicks is fun, I’m just not looking for any female action."

Chris looked surprised. "Neither am I, I just like to look every once in a while."

JC gave Chris a wicked grin. "Okay, Chris, you watch those half-naked girls with Joe, and Lance will watch DVDs with me and Justin." Mike laughed at that and JC gave him a wink, his blue eyes bright with mischief as he added, "Mike and Charlie too, if we can get Charlie to watch."

Charlie looked at JC in surprise as Lance’s eyebrows went up and he asked, "Just what DVDs are you talking about, Josh?"

JC stood and reached across the table to pick up one of the bags Mike had carried in, grinning, and sat back down as he pulled a black box out of it and handed it to Lance. "Just this. You’ll like it, I’m sure."

Lance took the box, looking skeptical, and read the title. "’ _Queer As Folk_ _’_?"

Chris’ eyebrows went up and Charlie said, "That show’s pretty good. Justin’s hot."

Lance chuckled and started reading the back of the box as Justin grinned across the table at Charlie and said, "Thanks!"

Charlie turned bright red and Mike laughed. "He meant the Justin on the show."

Justin pouted and JC chuckled, patting Justin’s knee as he said, "You’re hot too, baby, don’t worry."

"Isn’t ‘ _Queer As Folk_ ’ that show that got Showtime blasted for showing full frontal male nudity almost every episode, and showing gay and lesbian sex all the time, but only showing het sex like once, ever?" Chris asked, still looking surprised.

Lance looked up from the back of the box with a grin. "Really?! Sounds like fun."

JC laughed. "Yup, that’s the one. There’s a story line too though, Chris, it’s not just a bunch of guys getting freaky. I gotta admit that’s how the show got my attention though." He grinned completely unrepentantly and Joey chuckled. "I was channel surfing one night and happened to flip by Showtime when Brian and some guy were having sex in a shower, and I had to stop and see what show would dare show two guys having sex without pulling any punches."

"Our sweet, shy, Joshua watches softcore gay porn," Lance said then, grinning at JC. "I’m so proud of you!"

JC laughed. "Hey, a guy’s gotta have _something_ to do when he can’t sleep." Lance laughed and JC went on, "I had to buy it when I saw it on DVD. I want to watch it with Justin." JC gave Lance a wicked grin as Justin looked surprised.

Lance chuckled as Chris said, "Kinky sex, hot tubs, making out in front of people, gettin’ freaky in the back seats of cars, watching gay porn.... You’re gonna completely corrupt the Infant, Josh, you know that, right?"

JC looked at Chris, grinning. "And this is bad, how?"

Justin, Mike, Joey, and Lance laughed at that while Charlie grinned, blushing, but Chris just looked surprised.

There was a muffled buzz then and everyone looked towards the sound to see where it was coming from while JC reached down to pick Justin’s backpack up off the floor and unzip it. The buzzing got louder and JC pulled out his phone, looking surprised as he flipped it open and said, "Hello?"

"Hey sweetie! How’s my favorite guy tonight?" Britney asked brightly, making JC chuckle.

"He’s fine, lil’ bit, what’d you need?" JC said, grinning at Justin who mouthed ‘I want to talk to her too’.

JC nodded at Justin, listening as Brit said, "I meant _you_ , silly! Juppy’s not a guy, he’s a fairy. He’s admitted it himself."

JC heard Wade’s voice in the background say, "He didn’t need to tell me," and JC laughed.

"Well, then I’d have to say I am too," JC said

Brit giggled and told Wade, "Josh says he is, too."

JC heard Wade laugh and say, "Was that supposed to be news?! Those clothes of his sort of gave him away, not to mention the toe ring."

JC chuckled. "Let me talk to him."

Brit giggled and said, "Sure, but I want to talk to you some, too!"

JC grinned. "No problem, lil’ bit."

"I’ll be right back then, sweetie," Brit said. "I’m going to run get a drink. Here he is." JC heard a slight rustle of movement, then Britney’s slightly muffled voice said, "Be nice, honey. I’ll be right back."

"I’m always nice," Wade said, the volume of his voice making it obvious he was the one holding the phone now. "Grab me a beer while you’re out."

"If I can find any," Brit replied in the background, then JC heard a door close and Wade spoke again.

"Hey C, how ya doin’?"

"Great! How about you?" JC asked, looking at the bag in his lap and smiling as Justin watched him with a grin.

Wade chuckled. "Pretty good. I’ll be doing better this weekend though, we rearranged things so Brit will have time off. We’re gonna disappear for a couple of days, have some quality time."

JC grinned. "Good for you, you guys need more time together."

Wade sounded amused as he said, "Yeah man, that’s what I kept telling her. Besides, I’m really tired of sneaking back to my room at four am."

JC laughed and said insincerely, "Aww, poor baby Wade."

Justin grinned at that as Wade snorted and said, "Speaking of babies, how’s the Infant?"

JC chuckled. "Don’t let him hear you call him that, he’ll kick your ass."

Chris laughed as Justin asked indignantly, "What did that accented horn-dog call me?"

"He wouldn’t say that to my face," Wade said to JC then, chuckling.

JC looked up and grinned at Justin. "I’m not telling you, baby."

Justin gave him a dirty look as Wade snorted again and said, "Go ahead and tell him, I’m not afraid of fairy-boy. He couldn’t kick _Britney_ _’_ _s_ ass, much less mine."

JC laughed. "You’d better be nice, Robson, or _I_ might have to kick your ass. That’s my baby you’re talkin’ about!"

Wade laughed. "You and whose army, Chasez? You’re nothing but hair and lungs!"

JC spluttered indignantly as he heard Britney exclaim, "Wade! Why are you picking on Josh?!"

"Justin started it!" Wade said.

"Not surprising," Brit said, in classic ‘duh?’ mode, "that still doesn’t explain why you’re picking on _Joshua_!"

"He said he was gonna kick my ass!"

"Good!" Brit said loudly, "It needs kicked for picking on my guys!"

JC chuckled at that and listened to see what Wade would say.

" _Your guys_?!" Wade asked indignantly, "What am I, chopped liver?!"

"Just, give me my telephone," Britney said in her most classic no-nonsense tone. "If you can’t be nice, I won’t let you talk to them."

Wade snorted. "Make me!"

There was an oof and then a thud followed by the obvious sound of the phone being dropped, and then the connection broke.

JC laughed, his blue eyes sparkling as he closed his phone and laid it on the table, looking at Justin. "Britney’s kicking his ass for us."

Justin grinned. "Good!"

Lance chuckled. "What’d Brit want?"

JC looked over at Lance, grinning. "I have no clue. Wade started making comments before she got to tell me, and I thought if I talked to him a minute he’d get bored and wander off so I could talk to Brit."

Chris snorted. "Probably would have worked too, that boy’s an airhead."

Justin said, "Yeah, but if people knew what I do he’d be the envy of two-thirds of the men in America."

Chris raised an eyebrow. "Why only two thirds?"

Justin grinned. "The other third don’t want Brit to begin with."

Lance laughed. "I thought you were going to say something else."

Justin gave Lance a wicked grin. "I could if you like, Brit has no shame and tells me everything..."

JC chuckled. "Baby, she can’t have told you much, you’ve been asking me too many questions."

Chris, Mike, Joey, and Lance all laughed as Justin made a face at JC. "Brit’s not a _guy,_ Josh. How’s she supposed to tell me about real sex?"

Joey snorted at that and Lance chuckled and shook his head, but Chris just grinned and said, "I thought you said she and Daniel get along pretty good."

Justin nodded. "They do."

"And that Brit has been sharing a bus with Daniel, Genny, and Wade," Lance said, grinning.

Justin nodded, looking a little confused. "Yeah, so?"

JC chuckled. "Then she doesn’t tell you everything."

Justin looked surprised, then annoyed. "Hey, you’re right! That _heifer_ , I’m gonna kick her little Louisiana ass next time I see her! She got _me_ to tell _her_ everything."

Lance chuckled, remembering what little he’d heard Justin tell her, which had been pretty tame considering what JC and Justin had done since.

JC snorted. "You say that like that was difficult. All she had to do was ask, I’m sure."

Mike, Joey, Lance, and Chris all laughed at that while Justin gave JC a surprised look.

The phone buzzed again then and JC picked it up with a grin, flipping it open. "Hey Brit!"

"Why would Britney be calling you?" a surprised male voice asked, surprising JC as well.

"Because we’re friends. Who is this?" JC asked, thinking the voice was familiar – Daniel maybe? – but unable to put a face to it.

The man snorted. "Forget me that quick, Jayce?" he asked, "I would think that you could recognize the voice of someone you’ve known for so many years."

JC frowned, finally realizing it was Tony. "How did you get this number?"

Justin was watching JC closely, wondering who it was that was making JC frown like that and how they’d gotten his cell number.

Tony chuckled. "Melinda gave it to me since I’m such a _dear_ old friend. You don’t sound too happy to hear from me. I thought you’d be ... _lonely_ , by now," he said, sounding a little smug.

"I’m not," JC answered shortly. "I was busy, what do you want?"

Lance and Chris exchanged a look, thinking that there were very few people who could get JC’s cell number and that he wouldn’t talk like that to most of them. JC was hardly ever snippy with people, even if they were obnoxious to him, and he hated confrontations.

"I missed you," Tony said simply.

"So sorry. Go see Claude, he’ll find someone to take care of you," JC said, no longer really frowning but not looking especially happy or sounding at all sincere.

Justin frowned a little harder then, trying to remember when he’d heard JC mention someone named Claude. It had just been in the last day or so, he was sure.

"Where are you staying while you’re in California next weekend?" Tony asked, sounding hopeful.

"Not with you," JC answered immediately. "I told you it was over and I meant it."

Justin’s eyes darkened then, a sudden angry frown appearing on his face as he finally realized who it was and began strongly considering taking the phone from JC. Lance and Chris both frowned at Justin’s change in expression and JC’s words, putting two and two together, and Joey sat up a little straighter so he could see JC better over the bags on the table.

"C’mon, Jayce, you know how much I care about you. I miss you," Tony said softly, sounding sincere.

"Forget it, Tony. I’m not buying it anymore. If you really cared like you’ve always said you do you wouldn’t hurt me every time I see you. I don’t need that in my life, and I don’t need you." JC was looking down at the table in front of him, not wanting to make eye contact with Justin because he was quite sure Justin would ask for the phone.

"I did _not_ hurt you every time, Jayce, and never on purpose. I love you," Tony said, his tone of voice making it obvious he was upset.

"Tell it to somebody who cares, Tony. You used to be someone I trusted, but you aren’t anymore. I have enough to worry about without you," JC said, his voice calm and firm.

Tony was quiet a moment and then asked, "What changed? Are you still upset because I punched you back when you hit me?"

JC snorted. "No, I’m upset about all the other times you hit me over the last six years, Tony, and the times you hurt me without using your fists."

Lance’s eyebrows went up and he looked at Justin, wondering how he’d take that and surprised to see Justin didn’t look like this was news. Justin just looked pissed.

"I’ve never hurt you on purpose, Jayce, you know that," Tony said.

"Yes you did, Tony," JC said, "it happened too often for it to always be an accident. I remember how it used to be, how once upon a time I could tell you loved me every time you touched me, and when you looked at me. The last time I saw you that was gone. I was just a body for you to fuck, and not one you particularly cared about either. I blamed myself for it then, but I don’t anymore. I gave you all I could and it was never enough, and I’m tired of giving and never getting anything back but abuse. If I wanted fucked like a two dollar whore I wouldn’t have to go to you for it, I promise."

Lance’s frown deepened into to a scowl and Chris had to visibly control himself while Justin just looked away from JC, his dark blue eyes and clenched jaw all that showed how angry he was. Joey was the only one of the four who didn’t look upset, but he was thinking that he had a friend north of Albany who wouldn’t mind Joey using six feet or so of his ninety acres for such a good cause.

Tony snorted. "No, you just wanted somebody who’d love you like you were made of glass when you felt like it, and live without you the rest of the time. That got old, Jayce. I need more than that."

JC gave a short, mirthless bark of a laugh. "Good! You won’t miss me."

Tony was silent a long moment then, and sounded unhappy as he finally said quietly, "I do though. Even after all these years of listening to you talk about him, I still love you. I miss you, Jayce. I hoped I could see you after the concert in Oakland to apologize for last time..."

JC snorted, his tone calm and even a little disdainful. "It’s not going to work, Tony. I’m not going to let you fuck me when we’re out there. I’m not even going to see you."

Justin looked at the bag in front of him, wishing he could get his hands on Tony for just a few minutes.

"Why not? You always have before. Did you find somebody new or something?" Tony asked, sounding skeptical.

"Yes," JC said simply, hoping Tony wouldn’t hear the lie.

"Who is it?" Tony asked after a long pause, something in his tone that JC couldn’t quite identify. "I know you could have anyone, Jayce."

"You don’t know him," JC said, making Justin look over at him in surprise. "We only hooked up a little while ago, but he’s been with us a long time. I love him, and more importantly I can trust him."

JC waited for a response to that, thinking that if Tony was going to get mad that would do it. He’d never once told Tony he loved him in the years he’d been sleeping with him, even though he’d told Tony a thousand times how much he loved Justin.

"Is he good to you?" Tony asked after another long pause, and JC realized finally that that odd tone he’d heard was defeat. Tony was a strong-willed, confident guy, and JC couldn’t remember ever hearing him sound defeated before.

JC looked and sounded surprised as he answered, "Yeah Tony, he’s good to me." JC looked over at Justin, meeting his gaze as he suddenly smiled and added, "He loves me with all his heart and says I’m the best thing that ever happened to him. He’s what I’ve needed all these years, and more than I dared hope for."

Justin smiled back at JC, the simmering anger he felt fading at the sight of the love in JC’s clear blue eyes. JC had been hurt, yeah, but he’d never be hurt again, Justin would make sure of it.

"I’m happy for you," Tony said quietly after a minute, sounding anything but. "After pining after _him_ for so long, you deserve to be happy."

"I am. I’m happier than I’ve ever been," JC said, giving Justin a sweet smile before he looked back down at his lap.

"Good. Well, um, I’ve got-gotta go Jayce," Tony said then, sounding more than a little bit odd. "B-bandit needs walked." JC picked at a stain on his knee, thinking about how Tony hadn’t wanted the dog inside at all during his last visit and sure Tony was just making an excuse to get away from him. Tony paused a long moment, then added in a half-whisper, "I love you."

"I know you do, Tony," JC replied quietly, sounding much calmer and happier than he looked. "Be safe, okay?"

"Always," Tony answered softly, knowing that was the closest he was going to get to JC admitting he still cared about him. "Bye."

There was a click as the line disconnected, and JC listened to the empty line a moment before he said softly, "Goodbye." He closed the phone and let the hand holding it fall to his lap, looking at it for a long moment before he finally lifted his head to look at the others.

Justin looked concerned. "You okay?" he asked softly, reaching out to touch JC’s shoulder.

JC smiled quickly, reaching up to squeeze Justin’s hand where it rested on his shoulder. "Yeah, baby, I am."

Justin returned the smile and turned his hand over to take JC’s, lowering both of them to rest on the backpack in JC’s lap.

"What did he want?" Lance asked, looking fairly calm even though he wasn’t really.

JC looked over at Lance and shrugged. "Me."

Chris spoke up then, giving JC a smile even though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. "You handled him really well, Josh. I’m proud of you."

JC smiled. "Thanks Chris." There was silence then for a long moment before JC suddenly said, "Lance?"

Lance looked questioningly at him. "Yeah?"

"You need to have a serious talk with Melinda. She gave Tony my number, there’s no telling who else she might give our numbers to if they call her," JC said.

Chris frowned and looked at Lance. "Why do we keep her around at all? It seems like she never does anything she’s supposed to and she’s _always_ doing shit like that."

"Jive hired her, not me," Lance replied, making a disgusted face. "I can’t really do much about it unless personnel lets me transfer her out. I’ll be sure she knows we’re pissed though, she’s supposed to ask us before she gives _anyone_ our contact info, even our families."

JC snorted. "Well, she didn’t. I would have told her not to, everyone I wanted to have my number already does."

"I’ll do something about it," Lance said, nodding.

 

 


	39. Chapter 39

 

~~~~39~~~~

 

JC’s phone buzzed again a few minutes later and JC flipped it open as he lifted it to his ear, looking at the bag on the table in front of him. "Hello?" he asked, sounding a little wary.

Britney’s voice immediately said, "Hey sweetie! Who were you talking to?"

JC grinned. "Nobody important, Brit, just somebody I used to know."

Joey and Lance laughed at that, breaking the tension in the room and making JC look over at them in time to see Chris give him a big grin and a thumbs-up.

JC winked at them and then said to Brit, "I gather you won the fight for the phone."

Brit giggled. "I didn’t have to, Wade’s busy."

"Really, extremely busy," a male voice JC didn’t recognize said, followed by Wade’s voice saying, "Not busy enough or you wouldn’t be able to talk anymore."

JC laughed as he heard a chuckle, followed by a moan that made Britney giggle again and say, "I know you two are gonna get noisy so I’m gonna go talk in the other room, ‘kay love?"

There was a pause and another low moan, then Wade’s voice said, "Bye doll," followed by a laugh and then a slightly breathless male voice saying, "Tell Jup we said hi."

Britney giggled again and JC heard a door close, then she said, "Sorry about that, sweetie. Danny came back early and Wade’s happy to see him."

JC chuckled. "I could tell. What’d you need, lil’bit?"

"Momma told me to call and see if you’d gotten that package from her yet. She says you should have had it yesterday at the latest," Brit said.

JC looked over at Lance in surprise. "I think we did get it, Brit, hold on a sec and I’ll find out."

"Sure," Brit answered.

JC pulled the phone away from his ear and asked Lance, "Didn’t we get a box from Brit’s mom?"

Lance’s eyes went wide. "We sure did, I forgot all about it. It’s over there in the corner with all the other mail we haven’t opened yet."

Lance stood quickly and started for the pile of boxes and bags while JC put the phone back to his ear and said to Brit, "We got it, we just haven’t opened it yet. We’ve been kind of busy."

Justin laughed at that understatement while Britney giggled and said, "Yeah, having sex is always more fun than opening mail."

Joey got up to go help Lance as JC grinned and said, "We got out and did something fun with the guys, actually, just like you told us to."

"Oh! You got your box?" Brit asked happily.

"Yeah we did, both of them," JC answered, smiling as he looked over at Justin, who was watching as Lance and Joey moved the pile of boxes and mail bags.

"So, what did you think of yours?" Britney asked.

JC grinned wickedly. "The strawberry is good."

Justin turned his head quickly to look at JC, grinning as Britney laughed delightedly and said, "I told Wade that Justin could get you to play! Wait until you try the mint, it tastes just like those patty things we like and it’s all tingly."

JC chuckled. "Some of the stuff in the box you sent Justin is, too."

Chris was watching JC and listening, grinning as he wondered how long it would be before Britney asked him something that made him blush.

Britney giggled. "And can I assume you found this out the hard way?"

JC laughed. "I didn’t."

"Oh, and Juppy is playing with you, so that means somebody else is involved... Spill!" Britney said happily, "I wanna know!"

"You can ask him about it if you want," JC said, grinning and watching as Lance walked over to the table to put down a small box and then pulled out his chair to give Joey someplace to put the bigger box from Britney’s mom.

"Okay, that works," Brit said. "Give him the phone."

JC grinned and stood, walking around Lance and Joey to hand Chris the phone. "Brit wants to talk to you."

Chris looked surprised and took the phone, "Yeah, kiddo? Whaddya need?"

Brit giggled. "Hi Chris! Josh tells me you’ve been playing with the stuff I sent Juppy."

Chris chuckled. "Yeah, there’s all kinds of cool stuff in there. We’re having fun with it, thanks kid."

"Who we?" Brit asked brightly.

Chris grinned. "Who we what?"

Joey laughed and sat back down next to Chris, wondering how long he’d drag it out before he told her what she wanted to know.

Britney giggled again. "Who are you playing with?"

"Well, let’s see. One of them is tall and hot and hairy and has this whole teddybear vibe going on," Joey snorted and Chris grinned at him as he went on, "and the other one looks innocent and gorgeous as can be, but has an even dirtier mind than I do."

Lance chuckled, shaking his head as he pulled a knife out of one of the kitchen drawers and headed back towards the box to open it.

Brit sounded floored as she said, "Whoa." Chris laughed, and she asked in an awed tone, "You’re doing Lance _and_ Joe?!"

"Yep," Chris replied smugly. "I’m a lucky guy, I get to have two of my four favorite people in the world."

Britney laughed. "I’m so happy for you guys! Wade was sure JC and Justin would wind up sharing that lube, but he wouldn’t tell me who with. Did he know y’all were together?"

"Well, I doubt he knew I was with them, that’s only been a few days." Chris looked over at Lance and asked, "Babe? Does Wade know you and Joe have been together a while?"

Lance looked up as he was lifting he flaps on the top of the box, looking surprised. "I didn’t know it if he does."

Lance looked over at Joey, who shrugged. "There was that one time he almost caught us in the rehearsal room at the compound, but I didn’t think he saw anything."

Chris asked Brit, "Did you hear all that?"

"Yep! I know how to find out. Wade’s just next door, I’ll go ask him." Chris heard a light thump, then the sound of a footsteps and a door opening just before Brit said feelingly, "Damn Danny, why can’t you be bi? I’d make you the happiest kept man in the country."

Chris laughed and heard a thud and a rustle before Wade asked, "Did you want somethin’ doll or are you just starin’ at my guy again?" Chris grinned, trying to remember which one of Britney’s dancers was named Danny and thinking that he had to be something special to get Wade and Brit’s attention.

Britney snorted. "I wanted something. I can stare at Danny anytime, I wouldn’t interrupt you two fucking hello just for that." Chris laughed at that, thinking only Britney would say someone was ‘fucking hello’ as Brit went on to ask, "Who did you think Juppy would be sharing that box of lube with?"

Chris heard a soft chuckle as Wade made an annoyed noise and said, "You came in here to bug me right now for _that_?! Hell woman, Lance and Joe have been together for-fucking-ever and Chris has the hots for both of them. I figured with JC finally comin’ out they’d all be getting laid pretty often, especially Justin and Lance. Now, get your pretty little ass out of here so Daniel can get back to fucking mine, okay doll?"

Daniel laughed but didn’t sound very happy as he asked, "Is fucking you all I’m good for?"

"Of course not," Wade said, thinking quickly, "you’re also lots of fun to fuck and better at giving blowjobs than Brit and Gen put together."

Chris laughed, but Brit snorted and told Wade, "You can just play with him and his cock then, me and my cunt are on strike!"

Chris heard a rustle of fabric as Wade said, "Doll, wait, don’t be that--"

Chris heard a door slam, followed by Britney’s voice, sounding amused as she quietly said, "He’s just being a prick because Daniel’s been gone a few days and he missed him. He’ll apologize to me and Gen later tonight, even if we don’t have cocks like Danny’s." Britney giggled suddenly and added, "But then, I don’t think anyone had a cock like Danny’s, except maybe Joe. He looks like he’s probably hung."

Chris chuckled. "Kiddo, you have a very dirty mouth. What would your mother say if she heard you talking like that?"

Brit giggled. "Probably something like ‘Britney Jean, shut your fucking mouth!’"

Chris laughed at that and shook his head. "Girl, you’re too much."

"I sure am." Britney giggled and then asked, "Has Lance got the box from momma open yet?"

Chris watched Lance set the box over on the kitchen counter and then walk back to sit down again. "Yeah, he has. Babe? What was in the box?"

Lance grinned. "Brit’s mom sent us a big batch of homemade cookies and half a dozen jars of that sandcastle brownie mix you like so much."

"Oh!" Chris exclaimed, grinning. "Brit, tell your momma I love her next time you talk to her, okay?"

Britney giggled. "I will. Can I talk to Josh again?"

"Sure, kiddo!" Chris replied immediately. "You be careful not to hurt Wade when you’re leadin’ him around by the balls, okay?"

Britney giggled again. "Okay."

"Christopher Alan Kirkpatrick!" Lance said, shocked, and Chris gave him a ‘what did I do?’ look.

Joey, Justin, and JC grinned, waiting to see what Lance would do to Chris. Lance was just like their mothers were; if he was using all three of his names then Chris was in deep shit.

Britney sing-songed, "You’re in trouble!" She giggled again and then said, "Love you guys, hug Lance and Joe for me, ‘kay?"

Chris made a face, sure she was right. "I will. Be good, brat. We love you too. Here’s Josh."

Chris stood and leaned in front of Lance to hand JC the phone, and Lance waited until JC had it before he swatted Chris’ ass, hard. "I can’t believe you!" Lance said, incensed. "You do _not_ talk to girls like that, Chris, especially not girls as young as Brit!"

Chris sat down, rubbing his rear and giving Lance a dirty look. "She’s older than Mike _and_ Charlie, and not a hell of a lot younger than Juppy or even you. Besides, you didn’t hear any of what she said to me, babe. She’s got a really dirty mouth. I was being good compared to her!"

JC listened to Britney laughing for a moment and then said, "You got him in trouble, brat, that wasn’t nice."

"I didn’t say balls in front of Lance, I know better," Brit answered immediately, sounding smug and amused. "I only talk dirty when daddy Bass can’t hear me."

JC chuckled. "It’s no wonder Jup calls you sassy girl."

Lance looked over at JC and raised an eyebrow, wondering what Britney had said as Britney giggled and said, "But I’m ever so much fun."

JC snorted. "And so humble too."

Justin laughed at that as Britney giggled again and then asked, "So, how are you doing, sweetie? Happy?"

JC smiled and looked at Justin. "I’m doing great, lil’bit. Happier than I’ve ever been, I think."

Justin grinned at him and Brit sounded happy when she said, "I’m so glad, Josh. I know you’ve been lonely a long time now. I don’t know how many times I’ve told Justin to just tell you how he felt, but he never did listen to me. Now you can finally be happy together."

"We are, Brit," JC said, reaching for Justin’s hand with a big smile. "I’m a really lucky guy, anyone but Justin would have given up on me catching the clue bus years ago."

Chris and Joey both laughed at that while Lance grinned, amused.

Justin chuckled and said, "Babe, I was just as oblivious to the fact you loved me."

JC smiled at Justin, squeezing his hand and opening his mouth to say something but closing it again when Brit spoke again.

"Josh, you’re both very lucky, but I think Justin got the best end of the deal," Brit said.

"How so?" JC asked, surprised.

"Because Justin needs you to take care of him,” Brit replied, and JC could hear the smile in her voice. “We all know you’d do anything for him, sweetie, and you know what he needs almost before he does. He’s really lucky to have you."

JC smiled softly. "Thanks, Brit, but I think you underestimate him, or overestimate me. He takes care of me at least as much as I take care of him."

Justin shook his head, grinning. "No I don’t, babe, all I do is make you eat."

Lance chuckled at that and JC smiled at Justin, listening to Brit giggle as he said, "You do a lot more than that! You hold me when I need it, you dry my tears when I cry, you make sure I never doubt how much you care about me, and you’re always there when I need a friend. You’re what keeps me sane, baby, you always have been."

Britney was silent then, waiting to hear what Justin would say to that, and Justin looked surprised a moment before he finally said, "I don’t do all that, Josh..." He trailed off, then shrugged. "I’m just here."

JC chuckled and squeezed Justin’s hand again. "Baby, you do all of that just by being here. You’re everything to me."

Justin smiled, his dark blue eyes full of love as he said softly, "I feel the same way, Josh."

JC was about to say something when Britney interrupted him. "Sing for me," she said.

JC laughed. "What, am I your personal jukebox now or something?"

Charlie, Mike, and Justin chuckled as the other three exchanged grins, wondering what Brit wanted him to sing.

"Pleeease?" Britney begged, and JC knew her well enough to be sure she was pouting even though she didn’t have an audience. "I _never_ get to listen to you sing in person, and CDs just aren’t the same. "

JC rolled his eyes. "Oh all right, what do you want me to sing?"

Brit was quiet a minute, thinking, then said, "Sing something for Justin."

"How about I sing something _with_ Justin?" JC asked, smiling at Justin, who grinned.

Brit laughed. "I guess that works, I love listening to him, too."

JC grinned. "Good! Here goes." He slipped his hand out of Justin’s and took the phone with it so he could hold it between them, then began tapping out a rhythm on his thigh with his free and humming so softly Lance could barely hear him.

Justin listened closely a second and then grinned at JC. After another moment he said in a deeper than normal voice, "’ _Like a moth to a flame, burned by the fire. My love is blind, can_ _’_ _t you see my desire? That_ _’_ _s the way love goes. That_ _’_ _s the way, that_ _’_ _s the way_.’"

The others sitting at the table all watched with various expressions, ranging from Charlie’s surprise to Chris’ delighted grin. Joey chuckled, remembering how when they were recording that song they’d finally kept a version Jive didn’t like because Justin had stubbornly sung his part from a female point of view – or a gay male one – using the fact he’d sung along to the CD half his life as an excuse.

JC picked it up there, grinning and looking into Justin’s eyes as he sang, "’ _Don_ _’_ _t mind if I light candles, I like to watch us play and, baby, you_ _’_ _ve got on what I like. That_ _’_ _s the way... Come closer baby, closer, reach out and feel my body, I_ _’_ _m gonna give you all my love_.’"

" _’_ _Oh sugar, don_ _’_ _t you hurry_ ,’" Justin sang next, a suggestive little smile on his face as he went on, "’ _you_ _’_ _ve got me here all night, just close your eyes and hold on tight. Oh baby don_ _’_ _t stop, don_ _’_ _t stop, go deeper, baby, deeper, you feel so good I_ _’_ _m gonna cry..._ ’"

JC lifted the phone back to his ear instead of picking up the next part, smirking as he said, "And if you want to hear the whole song, Brit, you have Janet’s CD. I know ‘cause I got her to sign it for you."

Lance, Chris, and Joey all laughed at that while Mike chuckled and Charlie grinned, trying to ignore the fact his face was flaming yet again.

Brit giggled. "That was so cool! I love listening to you two, and that song is perfect for you."

JC chuckled. "I’m glad you liked it, little bit."

"Well I did, thank you. Can I talk to the baby now?" Brit asked, trying not to laugh.

JC smirked at Justin. "Sure."

"I love you, sweetie, have fun. And don’t be good, okay?"

JC laughed. "Okay, I won’t. Love you too. Here he is." JC offered Justin the phone.

Justin took it with a grin and then leaned over to kiss JC, obviously using tongue as JC responded warmly. They pulled apart after a minute and Justin gave JC a wicked little grin, then put the phone to his ear and said, "Hey, sassy girl!"

"What took so long?" Brit asked, "Aren’t you sitting by him?"

"Yeah, I am. He was lookin’ so good, I just had to kiss him," Justin said, grinning at JC who just chuckled.

"Josh always looks good," Brit said, laughing.

"I know, that just means I have to kiss him a lot." Justin smirked and switched hands with the phone so he could take JC’s hand again and hold it.

Brit giggled. "You do a lot more than kiss him. Have you decided which flavor of lube is your favorite yet?"

Justin blushed and looked down at his lap with a little grin. "No, not yet."

JC grinned and watched him, wondering what Brit had asked, especially considering Brit’s dirty mouth, complete lack of shame and all the things he knew Justin had done. Neither one of them had been getting much sleep.

Lance, Chris, Joey, Mike, and Charlie were all watching too, wondering what had made Justin blush. He was pretty much shameless from what they’d seen and heard that day, so it had to be something interesting.

Brit laughed. "You’d better get busy if I’m going to make sure there’s some in the next box. I was going to send it Friday to be sure you didn’t run out, but with all five of you using it maybe I should send some tomorrow."

Justin blushed even redder. "We’ve got plenty!"

JC laughed, sure of what they were talking about now.

"Maybe I should send you something else then," Brit teased. "What kind of toys do you want? That little shop where Danny bought the body paint has got all sorts of interesting stuff."

Justin’s face went beet red and he let go of JC’s hand as jumped up, then looked JC and said, "I’m gonna go talk to her in our room, okay babe? I won’t be long."

JC chuckled, sure he didn’t want to know what Britney had said – or asked – to make Justin turn that red. "Have fun."

Justin made a face and then started for their room as he mumbled, "Somehow I doubt that."

"Hey!" Brit exclaimed indignantly, "I’m lots of fun, and we both know you like talking about sex!"

"Well, yeah," Justin admitted, "but there’s some things you just don’t talk to _girls_ about!"

Everyone at the table laughed at that and watched Justin disappear into the room he shared with JC.

"Brit is going to be insufferable next time we see her," JC said then, grinning. He looked across the table at Charlie. "You’d better be ready for her, she’ll love teasing you. She makes the five of us look shy, and Wade and Danny are even worse than Brit."

Charlie’s eyes went wide. "You’re kidding."

JC shook his head, his eyes sparkling with suppressed laughter. "Nope! Brit’s got a dirty mouth, and she’s spent way too much time hanging around Wade, Daniel, and Gen. Between the three of them little miss Britney has gotten a rather thorough education in things I’m sure her mother would rather she didn’t know."

Mike chuckled. "Sounds like I need to talk to her friends, I’ve gotten the feeling there’s all sorts of fun stuff we don’t know about."

Charlie looked at Mike, still wide-eyed. "You’d better not!"

Mike grinned at him. "Why not, babe? If I hear something new, then I can tell you all about it. You don’t mind me talkin’ dirty, it’s just other people that bothers you."

Lance chuckled as Joey and Chris exchanged grins.

Charlie gave Mike a dirty look, his face bright red as he said, "I’m not sure I want you learning anything from Britney or Wade, not as easy as she made Justin blush. He’s shameless!"

JC laughed. "If you know which of his buttons to push, it’s _easy_ to make him blush."

Chris grinned wickedly. "And of course Josh would know all about Justin’s button."

Charlie’s face went beet red at that and even JC blushed, but he still grinned as he said, "Yeah, I have that unique privilege."

Joey and Lance laughed at the surprised look on Chris’ face and then Lance asked, "Josh, what did Brit want?"

JC snorted. "As far as I could tell she just wanted to yak at somebody while she waited for Wade to get done with Daniel."

Chris chuckled, nodding. "That was the impression I got too, only she got pissed at Wade so her plans may have changed."

JC grinned at Chris. "What’d Wade do?"

"Brit interrupted them while Daniel was doing Wade," Chris replied, not even noticing that Charlie’s face went bright red again, "and Wade wanted to know if she was there for a reason or just enjoying the view. She asked Wade the question she’d wanted to ask, then he told her to get out of his room so Daniel could get back to fucking him, and Daniel wanted to know if that was all Wade thought he was good for. Wade said Danny’s also a hot lay and that he gave much better blowjobs than Brit or Gen, and Brit said he could just play with Daniel then because she was going on strike."

JC laughed, blushing only a bit. "Oh, that’ll go over so well, and knowing what Justin’s told me, Danny’ll side with the girls. He’s getting tired of Wade spending an hour or two with him and then sleeping the rest of the night with the other two. Brit wants Daniel to join them ‘cause she has the hots for him, but Danny isn’t at all interested in girls and sees no reason to encourage her."

Lance chuckled. "When did you find all this out?"

JC grinned. "Justin likes to talk about all sorts of things now that we have each other’s undivided attention."

Chris snorted. "You wasted your afternoon at the beach on talkin’ about Brit’s sex life?" JC shook his head, smiling, and Chris said, "You’ve been with us the rest of the time."

Joey grinned. "No, they haven’t."

Chris looked lost for a second, then shocked. "Justin likes to talk about _other people_ _’_ _s_ sex lives when he’s in bed with _Joshua_?! What the hell is that boy using for a brain? _Tofu_?!"

Lance and Joey both laughed at that as Mike grinned and Charlie tried yet again to ignore the conversation, looking down at his lap.

JC laughed again, his face red. "Yeah, we talk in bed. It’s nice to be able to really talk to him again, I have a lot to catch up on."

Lance chuckled. "I was sure you two have been spending your nights having sex, not talking."

JC smirked. "It’s not like doing both at once is hard, Scoop. Though the talking has mostly been after, I have to admit, and we don’t get around to it until late. Or maybe that’s early?"

Joey chuckled and looked at Lance. "And to think, we just have sex and collapse in an exhausted pile."

Lance snorted. "JC and Justin have always been the last ones to get tired when we were dancing. I knew they had to be staying up most of the night after JC and Chris’ talk last night. Justin’s done too much in the last few days for them to be sleeping much."

"About that," Chris said then with a grin, "Were you shittin’ us when you said you two have had sex five times in one night?"

Charlie’s blush – which had been fading, albeit slowly – came back with a vengeance while Mike looked at JC, impressed.

JC blushed. "Well, five times between when we went to bed and when we got up. Three while it was actually dark, and we weren’t talking about Justin, we were talking about me."

Chris’ eyebrows went up, and then he smirked. "Does that mean he’s falling behind or outrunning you?"

JC chuckled, still a little red. "Chris, Justin’s _always_ been able to outrun me, figuratively and literally."

"Damn," Chris said, sounding a little awed. "I wish I was twenty again."

Lance laughed, shaking his head as Joey snorted and said, "You don’t wanna be twenty again Critter, back then you were straight."

"Oh yeah." Chris made a face. "Okay, so, twenty-five."

Lance grinned. "Sweetheart, then you were in the braids. You don’t need to be younger, you’re hot enough for two just like you are."

Joey nodded, smirking, and Chris actually blushed, making JC laugh in delight. It was a rare thing for somebody to make Chris blush.

JC, Lance, and Joey watched Chris blush for a minute before Chris gathered himself enough to change the subject. "What’s that other box you grabbed, babe?"

Lance grinned and handed Chris the box. "See for yourself."

Chris looked at the address on it, then his eyes got big and he grinned. "Antonia is an _angel_."

JC’s eyes widened and he looked at Lance as he asked, "Is that our rings?"

Chris picked up the knife Lance had left on the table and carefully started opening the box, grinning.

Lance chuckled and nodded, watching Chris. "Ought to be, she told me to expect them today. One of the girls must have brought them in while we were gone."

JC watched Chris cut the tape on the box and then open the flaps. "I thought they would take a lot longer."

Lance looked at JC, surprised. "Why should they? They’re plain bands, and the only one that needed resized was Justin’s. I hope he still wears the same size ring he did last time I got everyone’s ring sizes."

Chris lifted a black velveteen jewelry box out of the cardboard box and opened it, grinning as he saw each ring had a little piece of paper tucked into it to show whose it was. He lifted Lance’s out and then put the box on the table in front of him as he looked at the younger blond, suddenly serious. "Once you put it on you’re stuck with us. You know that, right?"

"I have been for years, why would I want to change that now?" Joey chuckled softly as Lance grinned at Chris and added, "Read the engraving, sweetheart."

Chris looked surprised and looked more closely at the inside of the ring, his eyes widening slightly as he saw his initials and Joey’s inside a Mobius strip. He looked up at Lance and said, "Babe, that’s not fair."

Lance smiled. "I was buying it, and that’s what I wanted there. If you wanted something different, you should have said something when we decided to get the rings."

Joey chuckled. "Let me see it, Critter."

Chris held the ring wordlessly out to Joey, who looked at it and then passed it back, smiling.

"I like that,” Joey said, pleased. “Next time we’re in Brooklyn I’ll have to go by and see Antonia."

Lance chuckled and held out his right hand to Chris, palm up and his fingers spread slightly as he waited for Chris to give him the ring.

Chris looked at him a moment, then at Lance’s hand as he lifted the ring and slipped it on Lance’s ring finger, unsurprised to find it was a bit tight as he slipped it past Lance’s knuckle but fit perfectly once it was on. He closed his hand around Lance’s with a sudden smile, then looked up to meet Lance’s eyes and said softly, "I love you."

Lance returned the smile, his green eyes shining. "I love you too, sweetheart." He looked over at Joey then and added, "Both of you."

Joey just smiled, knowing he didn’t have to say how he felt.

"Can I see the other two?" JC asked after a moment.

Lance chuckled and picked up the box, passing it to JC and then watching the brunette look inside at the rings as he said, "Your rings are a bit different from mine."

JC looked up at him. "How so?"

"Look and see," Lance said, smiling.

JC lifted out the ring tagged as Justin’s and looked at it, a beautiful smile blooming on his face as he read the inscription that took up almost the entire circumference of the band. He looked up at Lance after a moment as he closed his hand around the ring as he said softly, "Thank you."

Lance returned the smile. "You’re welcome. I thought you’d like it."

JC nodded quickly. "I do, it’s perfect."

"What does it say?" Chris asked, smiling.

"‘ _Forever has now begun_ ’, and our initials inside linked hearts," JC said, his face glowing with happiness as he smiled at them.

"Perfect," Joey said and Chris nodded, grinning.

They heard the door to JC and Justin’s room open then and Justin walked out, grinning as he said, "I’m supposed to tell y’all Brit bought us a video camera and expects us to use it, and that she loves everybody." He saw the black box in front of JC then and he walked around the table as he asked, "What’s that, babe?"

JC smiled and stood to meet Justin. "Something I’ve wanted for years. " He opened his hand between them to show Justin the ring while Lance, Joey, and Chris watched the couple with almost identical grins, waiting to see how Justin would react.

Charlie and Mike were quiet and smiling as they watched them, thinking rightly that the guys had pretty much forgotten they were even there.

Justin’s eyes went wide as a delighted grin bloomed on his face, and then he looked up at JC’s face quickly. "Where’s mine?"

JC’s smile widened. "This is yours, baby. Read the inscription, Lance was truly inspired."

Justin lifted left hand and took the ring, lowering his gaze to look more closely at it. After a moment he closed his hand around it and looked back up at JC, his eyes bright as he smiled at him. "I love it, it’s perfect. Does yours say the same?"

JC looked a little surprised, then chuckled. "I don’t know, I was too busy looking at yours."

Justin grinned and leaned forward to kiss JC quickly, then reached for the box on the table nearby. "Well, I want to know." Justin turned the box around so he could see the ring inside of it and took it out to look at it quickly, then looked at JC again, smiling. "They’re the same. Give me your hand baby, please?"

JC smiled and lifted his left hand without even thinking about it. Justin gave JC a sweet smile that lit up his dark blue eyes and said softly, "I love you, now and forever," as he slipped the ring on JC’s finger, then leaned forward to give JC a slow, deep kiss.

Lance remembered Justin singing to JC on the bus and smiled, sure Justin’s choice of words wasn’t a coincidence.

When they parted JC’s eyes were shining with emotion and unshed tears, and he reached for the hand holding Justin’s ring, opening it and taking the ring to put it on the third finger of that hand. JC held Justin’s hand a moment longer, looking into Justin’s eyes as he said, "I love you too baby, I always have and always will." JC leaned in to kiss Justin again as he released Justin’s hand, lifting his own hands to wrap his arms around Justin’s neck and smiling into the kiss when he felt Justin’s arms go around him and pull him close.

 

 


	40. Chapter 40

 

~~~~40~~~~

 

The other five watched JC and Justin kissing for almost five minutes before Lance finally leaned forward to grab one of the bags off the table and start going through it. Chris watched him as Lance pulled a black pair of jeans from the bag and popped the tags off of them, then held them out to him with a grin. "Sweetheart," Lance said, "try these on for me, please?"

Chris was completely surprised by the request and just looked at Lance for a moment, then at the jeans while Joey watched with a grin. JC and Justin pulled away from each other slightly to turn and look, both of them grinning as Chris finally took the pants.

"What," Chris asked, "can’t you try on your own clothes anymore?"

"Please?" Lance asked again, giving Chris puppy-dog eyes and a little pout.

Chris snorted, standing up to move away from the table as he dropped the black jeans over the back of the chair he’d been sitting in. He kicked his shoes off and then started unfastening the pair of Lance’s jeans he was wearing as he said, "I don’t see why I need to try them on, babe. We don’t always wear the same size."

Charlie blushed and looked at the bags in front of him when he realized Chris was going to strip right there.

Lance laughed and said, "Just put them on."

Chris kicked out of the pants he was wearing, revealing muscular, hairy legs and a pair of Scooby Doo boxers, then he picked up the new pair as he looked at Lance. "You are such a dom."

Chris started to put the jeans on as Joey chuckled, watching Chris interestedly.

Lance grinned. "You love it and we both know it, sweetheart, so quit complaining."

JC and Justin exchanged a grin and sat down, Justin reaching to hold JC’s left hand again as they watched the other three.

Chris made a face at Lance as he pulled the jeans up, shimmying slightly and looking surprised as he tucked the t-shirt he was wearing in and zipped them up. "Are you sure these are the right size?" He buttoned the jeans and looked at Lance, not noticing how Joey’s eyes had widened and then narrowed again with a wicked little gleam.

Lance looked Chris up and down, his grin growing as he saw the jeans were tight and just stretchy enough to fit like a second skin from Chris’ knees to his waist without binding or being uncomfortable. After he’d checked him out thoroughly Lance looked smug and said, "Oh yeah, those are _perfect_."

Chris’ eyebrows went up. "Babe, I don’t think you’re gonna be able to wear them, or even want to. They’re pretty snug."

"In all the right places, too," Joey said then, his voice low and rumbly as he leaned his chin on one hand and smirked at Chris. "Scoop, remind me to thank you properly later. And to hide _all_ his other pants."

Lance chuckled. "Sure, love. I knew he’d look good in them."

Chris looked at Joey in surprise, and then back at Lance. "You got them for me? I _have_ jeans!"

Lance just grinned as Joey smirked a little wider and said, "Yeah, but none of them look like those."

Chris looked down at the jeans, then back up at Joey and Lance. "They’re plain old black jeans."

JC laughed. "No, Chris, they aren’t. Those are lycra, aren’t they, Lance?"

Lance nodded at JC, grinning, then looked back at Chris. "Yup, like those jeans of yours."

Chris snorted. "Okay, so they’re _stretchy_ black jeans. Why is this so special?"

Joey grinned, letting his gaze roam over Chris’ legs again as he said, "Critter, you’re being dense. You’ve been hanging around Justin too much."

"Hey!" Justin said, laughing.

Joey grinned at Justin, then looked back at Chris. "Why do you like seeing Lance in tight pants?"

"He hardly ever wears tight clothes, Joe." Chris trailed off, then grinned at Joey and went on, "But when he does they show off that _perfect_ ass of his."

Lance smirked. "They show off _your_ ass, too."

Chris looked surprised. "But why would I want to show mine off?" Chris twisted, turning comically in a circle as he looked at his own butt, then looked back at Lance. "It’s nothing special."

Joey snorted and Lance chuckled and said, "Well, _we_ like it and I wanted to see it more often."

Chris looked at Lance like he was nuts. "If you say so, babe. I’ll wear them, they’re surprisingly comfortable, but I don’t see the point myself." Chris turned and bent to pick up the other pair of jeans, stretching the denim even tighter over his butt, then stood and stepped over to bend again and pick up his shoes, completely missing the way Joey and Lance watched him with almost identical predatory grins.

JC laughed, shaking his head. "At least I buy Justin stuff like hats and CDs, not something to show off his body for my personal amusement."

Chris turned quickly and saw Joey and Lance both leering at him and blushed, then gave them a dirty look and went to go put the jeans and shoes he’d picked up in their room.

Justin grinned at JC. "I already have tight jeans, babe."

JC grinned. "I’d noticed, I promise, but I didn’t buy them."

Chris walked back in and into the kitchen to get a drink as Lance laughed, rooting through the bag in his lap again. "Justin _did_ buy several of your tightest pairs though, including the black lycra ones. That’s where I got the idea." JC looked surprised as Justin just grinned unrepentantly at him, then Lance pulled a pair of dark indigo jeans out of the bag and pulled off the tags before he offered them to Joey, smirking. "Your turn."

"C’mon babe, you got to be kidding me!" Joey said, looking surprised as he took the jeans.

"Hah!" Chris crowed, "You gotta try them on and let everyone see ’em, Joe, just like I did. This might be fun." Chris walked over and grabbed his chair, pulling it away from the table a bit further before he flopped down, looking expectantly at Joey as he popped the top on a can of Dr. Pepper. "Well, get moving, big guy! Show us some skin!"

JC and Justin laughed as Lance smirked at Joey. "Yeah, I wanna see how those look."

Joey stood with a snort. "Alright, but it ain’t gonna be pretty. I don’t have the body to wear tight clothes."

Joey stepped out of his tennis shoes and undid his belt as Chris snorted. "Neither do I, but y’all made me do it anyway."

Charlie looked at the bags on the table again as Joey started to unzip his pants, but Mike just watched them all with a grin.

Joey looked at Chris in surprise, pulling down his Dockers down and then stepping out of them as he said, "Sure you do, Chris. You have a nice ass and all the dancing has done a number on your legs."

Lance chuckled, watching Joey step into the new jeans. "Joe, sweetheart, you dance just as much as he does, and you’ve got a pretty nice ass yourself. Both of you look good, I don’t see why you try so hard to hide it."

Chris snorted. "What about you? All those big baggy pants of yours and those long-tailed button-down shirts that you _actually button_."

Joey chuckled and nodded, zipping his jeans. "Yeah babe, if we gotta show some beef then you do too. Especially since we all know you have the best ass in the room."

JC, Justin, and Mike all laughed at that.

Lance looked surprised. "Well, Joe, I’m glad _you_ think so."

Chris laughed. "It’s not just Joe babe, the Bass booty is a sight to see. And still worth looking at even if you’re wearing clothes."

Lance blushed, smiling a bit, and looked at Joey as JC laughed and said, "Why don’t we just agree nobody in this room has anything to be ashamed of and leave it at that, okay guys?"

Justin grinned and nodded. "Yeah, what he said."

Mike grinned across the table at JC and Justin. "Thanks."

JC and Justin grinned back at Mike and then looked over at Joey again.

"I was serious," Joey said, grinning as he sat back down. "I want you to get some tight jeans, babe."

Lance looked over at Joey and pulled another pair of black jeans half-way out of the bag in his lap. "Like these? I was sure you two wouldn’t wear yours unless I had a pair too, and it’s not like a person can own too many jeans." Lance grinned.

Justin laughed. "Scoop’s a step ahead of you two, as usual!"

"Well c’mon, baby," Chris said with a smirk, ignoring Justin. "Put’em on! I wanna see if you got them tight enough."

Lance laughed and then shoved the jeans back in the bag he was holding and stood. "Okay, I’ll be right back."

"Hey, no fair," Joey said. "We changed in here!"

Lance grinned and headed for the bathroom, carrying the bag. "I’m not you."

JC chuckled and pulled the bag in front of him closer so he could take out the rainbow halter top he’d bought while Justin watched him, grinning.

"That _is_ for Brit, right?" Chris asked.

JC looked at Chris, surprised. "Of course it is! Who did you think I bought it for?"

Chris grinned at him. "With you and clothes there’s no telling, Josh."

"Chris, I’m not that bad." JC made a face at him and dug into another bag, pulling out a deep green shirt, a blue one and then a purple one. He rummaged around in that bag a moment more and then put the halter top in it and said, "That’s all for Brit. Baby, did you see these shirts?"

"No, I didn’t," Justin answered, still grinning. "What’d you find?"

JC grinned back at Justin. "They’re supposed to be night shirts I think, or maybe cover-ups for swimsuits, but I liked them."

JC held up the purple one to his chest and Chris, Mike, Charlie, and Joey all laughed when they saw it said ‘ _My Boyfriend Can Kick Your Ass_ ’.

"Babe," Justin said with a big grin, "you can’t wear that in public, you _do_ know that, right?"

JC nodded, still grinning. "Yeah, I know, but I like it! I can wear it on the bus or when we’re goofing around in hotels, and then when we get back home I can wear it around the house. The other two I can wear anywhere I think." JC flipped the shirt over his shoulder and held up the blue one next, which said, ‘ _Don_ _’_ _t Make Me Use My Pepper Spray, Dork_ ’, then lifted the green one so they see it said ‘ _My Shoes Cost As Much As Your Car_ ’.

Lance walked back out of the bathroom carrying his bag as Chris laughed and asked, "Josh, what on _earth_ possessed you to buy those?"

JC shrugged, grinning as he folded the shirts and stuck them in the Claire’s bag with the two bracelets he’d bought for himself. "I think they’re funny."

Joe chuckled. "Yeah, but did you think they were funny ha-ha or ‘I’m a flaming fairy’ funny?"

Justin chuckled as JC laughed and then said, "Well, both, really."

Lance laughed then, drawing everyone’s attention to where he stood about halfway between the table and the bathroom door. The jeans he’d bought for himself were at least as tight as the ones he’d bought for the others, and he’d also gotten a plain black t-shirt and a short sleeved black denim shirt that he’d left unbuttoned so that it didn’t hide much of what the tight t-shirt showed off.

JC and Justin both grinned, thinking it was about time Lance dressed like he was proud of his body, while Mike and Charlie looked appreciatively at him and wondered why he didn’t always dress like that.

"Damn," Joey said after a minute, sounding awed as Chris nodded vigorously, wide-eyed and staring at Lance.

Lance grinned at them and turned in a circle. "Does that mean I pass?"

Chris let out a short little laugh and sounded a little choked as he said, "Oh yeah. And you get the blue ribbon, too."

Joey nodded quickly and added, "And first prize is us."

Lance chuckled and walked over to sit back down in his chair between JC and Chris, dropping the bag in the floor by him since he’d gone through it already. "I’m the envy of teenage girls everywhere, then."

Chris grinned and shook his head as Joey said, "Nope, we are."

Mike snorted. "What about the teenage _guys_? Some of us are smart enough to know a good lookin’ guy when we see him." Charlie gave him a funny look and Mike made a face at him. "Don’t you look at me like that, _I_ _’_ _m_ not the one who had a poster of them in my bedroom."

Charlie turned red and JC, Justin, Chris, Joey, and Lance all grinned as Charlie said, "Yeah, but I wasn’t the one who watched the ‘ _Making the Tour_ ’ video so many times he’d memorized it _and_ wore out the tape."

"I sure did," Mike said, grinning. "I have great taste, and I wouldn’t try to deny it either." Charlie stuck his tongue out at Mike, whose grin turned a little wicked as he immediately said, "Don’t show me that unless you’re gonna let me play with it."

Charlie shut his mouth quickly, then gave Mike a dirty look as Mike smirked at him, and then Mike stuck out his tongue.

The guys laughed as Charlie made an annoyed noise and swatted Mike’s shoulder. "You’re a complete pain in the ass sometimes, you know that, right?"

Mike snorted and replied, "I am not! I know what I’m doing just as well as you!"

Charlie blushed again then, trying to ignore the other guys’ grinning faces. "I didn’t mean it like that and you know it. Would you just behave, please?"

Mike pouted. "But you’re so much fun to tease. I never got to find that out until now ‘cause I couldn’t say things like that unless we were alone, and then you don’t care."

Charlie looked at Mike a minute, trying hard not to smile at how very ridiculous Mike looked pouting. "Do you really enjoy teasing me and making me blush?"

Mike gave Charlie a little sheepish grin. "Well, yeah, but it’s not the blushing that’s so fun. Red’s not really your color, it clashes with your hair."

Charlie chuckled, shaking his head. "You’re going to keep doing it whether I like it or not, I know." Mike opened his mouth to deny that but Charlie kept right on talking, "You’ve got four bad examples to learn from now – Lance isn’t _quite_ as bad – and as long as they get away with it, you’re gonna try it too and we both know it."

Justin and Joey both looked surprised at that while Lance and JC grinned.

"In three days we’ve turned our sweet, shy Joshua into a bad example!” Chris crowed. “Yay us!"

JC laughed as Lance grinned at Chris and said, "I think Justin’s just a little bit more to blame than you are, sweetheart."

Justin grinned and gave JC’s hand a squeeze. "Yeah, but Chris was the bad example for me to follow. Well, him and Brit."

JC grinned at Justin. "I’ll have to get him a special thank-you gift. Vermont maybe."

Everyone laughed at that and after a moment Lance leaned forward to pull another bag off the table, one from Borders, and look into it. "I think this one’s yours, Justin," he said after a moment, passing the bag to JC.

JC let go of Justin’s hand and gave the bag to him, watching as Justin looked into the bag. "Yeah, this one’s mine," Justin said, glancing up quickly to grin at Lance before he looked back into the bag and began to dig around. Lance started sorting bags again then, and after a moment Justin pulled a CD from the bag in his lap with a big grin and set the bag in the floor, hopping up to head for the stereo.

JC watched Justin open the plastic wrap on the CD, grinning and wondering what Justin had found. Justin finally got the CD open and put it in the CD player, skipping ahead to the track he wanted and then waiting for the music to start. JC watched as Justin began to move to the music and then to sing along with his back to them.

" _’_ _Baby tell me is this good for you, cause for me it_ _’_ _s a dream come true. I think about you both day and night; if this is wrong, I don_ _’_ _t care if I_ _’_ _m right._ ’" Justin turned around then and he began to dance more suggestively to the music, still singing as he grinned at JC. "’ _Cause I know, one thing_ _’_ _s for certain, boy I_ _’_ _m not hurtin_ _’_ _for inspiration. And I feel, when we_ _’_ _re together, it could be forever and ever and ever.... I wanna be the ocean to your shore, give you comfort evermore. I wanna be the only thing you need, be the oxygen you breathe._ ’"

JC grinned and stood, moving around the table and crossing the room towards Justin as the younger man continued, "’ _Is this as good as I think it is? Cause I can feel it boy when we kiss. And there_ _’_ _s nothing more that I would ever ask for than to be with you, just to be with you_.’"

Joey watched Justin dancing, wondering why Justin usually pretended not to be able to when they weren’t doing choreography. The kid could pretend to be a graceless tool better than anyone Joey had ever seen.

Chris was busy trying to place the music as he watched Justin, and Lance wondered who the song was by too, thinking it sounded vaguely like the Spice Girls but that surely it wasn’t. It was a good song and everyone knew the Spice Girls had never done one of those.

Mike and Charlie just watched, Mike grinning and wondering how many people had been privileged to see Justin and JC when they danced and sang just for the fun of it.

JC reached Justin then and began dancing with him, his eyes bright, and when Justin started the bridge again JC joined in. "’ _Cause I know, one thing_ _’_ _s for certain, boy I_ _’_ _m not hurtin_ _’_ _for inspiration. And I feel, when we_ _’_ _re together, it could be forever and ever and ever... I wanna be the ocean to your shore, give you comfort evermore. I wanna be the only thing you need, be the oxygen you breathe_.’"

The others all watched as Justin’s hands moved to JC’s hips while the two sang along with the CD, dancing closer and closer as they went from merely grooving to the beat to doing something that would have better fit into Brit’s ‘ _I_ _’_ _m A Slave For You_ ’ video. JC and Justin had gotten in trouble more than once when they were dancing with much less obvious sexual intent than they were just then, and Lance suddenly found himself wondering if they would ever be able to dance together in public again without getting arrested.

JC listened as Justin started the next verse, holding Justin’s gaze as he danced with one hand on Justin’s lower back, their bodies brushing against each other with every move. "’ _What you give, you will receive_ ’," Justin sang, moving so that one of his thighs was between JC’s and they could get even closer, " _’_ _so baby bring it all to me. I will warm you like the sun, I always knew you were the one_.’" The chorus started again then and they both sang along, their dancing getting even more racy as the chorus repeated.

Charlie blushed after a minute and turned to look back at the table, and then a few minutes later even Mike turned red and looked away.

Chris smirked. "Guys, you’re embarrassing the kids."

Lance and Joey laughed at that and watched as Justin looked at Chris over JC’s shoulder, obviously about to say something, but then the song ended. JC and Justin both stopped dancing then, standing with their bodies pressed together from chest to mid-thigh, JC still straddling one of Justin’s thighs. JC smiled at Justin for just a moment in the sudden silence and then leaned in to kiss him just as the next song started.

Chris snorted and watched them begin to move to the music while they were still kissing, both of them grinning into the kiss as JC’s free hand moved to Justin’s hip, pulling him even closer if that was possible. Chris watched them dance through the first verse of ‘ _What You Need_ ’, both moving slower than the beat of the song but not by a whole lot.

Chris looked at Lance then. "How the hell do they do that without either suffocating or stepping on each other’s feet?"

Lance glanced at Chris and chuckled, and then he looked back at the dancing couple. "They’re talented."

Joey laughed, still watching JC and Justin. "Baby, that’s like saying they’re friends."

Chris laughed too at that and looked back across the room to where their two lead singers were dancing, glad they weren’t in a straight club. Chris watched them dance a few more minutes and then decided he was glad they weren’t in _any_ club. They would be mobbed and then arrested if they danced like that in public, so it was a good thing they seemed to want to keep it private. Well, sort of. Private _enough_ , anyway.

As the song went on JC and Justin progressed from kissing and dancing to seriously making out while they got as close as humanly possibly while still wearing their clothes, and when the song ended and the stereo stopped, they didn’t.

Chris turned to look at Lance again after a moment, grinning. "Do you think they even know the song ended?"

Lance chuckled, watching Justin take one of his hands off JC’s ass to slip it between their bodies as they kissed. "Well," Lance replied with a smirk, "if they do, I don’t think they care."

Joey turned his head to grin at them, missing it when JC’s pants slipped a bit as Justin unzipped them. "If I were either of them I know _I_ wouldn’t care," Joey said. "The way they’re going, somebody’s gonna get lucky really soon."

Mike and Charlie both watched Lance, Chris, and Joey as the three talked, and every once in a while Mike would look over towards JC and Justin, unable to ignore them even though he blushed every time he looked. Charlie was careful not to look because just knowing what was going on behind him made his face flame.

Chris watched as Justin slid one hand inside JC’s now-loose pants to cup JC’s ass, then Lance and Chris exchanged a surprised look, wondering exactly how far JC would let Justin go before he stopped him.

"I just love the floor show at this hotel," Chris said with a grin after watching the pair for another minute. "We have to come back another time."

Lance grinned at Chris, then looked over at JC and Justin again. "Nah, we get to take this show with us."

Justin moved to kiss the side of JC’s neck then as JC’s hands slid up under Justin’s shirt, and JC made a soft noise when Justin nibbled just above the neckline of his shirt. JC tipped his head forward, almost laying his head on Justin’s shoulder as Justin’s other hand slowly roamed downward and into JC’s jeans, pushing his jeans down a bit further and making Lance wonder if JC was wearing any underwear. JC’s hands roamed over Justin’s back as Justin kissed his way back up JC’s neck and finally kissed him again.

After several minutes Justin broke the kiss and smiled at JC as he pulled the older man’s jeans back up and said softly, "This is lots of fun, sweetheart, but if we don’t stop now we won’t stop at all."

JC gave Justin a wry smile, sounding a little out of breath as he replied, "I think that used to be my line."

Chris, Lance, and Joey all grinned at that as Justin chuckled and leaned in to give JC a quick kiss, then said, "I know, I’m a bad influence on you."

JC’s grin widened as he took his hands off Justin’s back and moved them to his own waist to refasten his jeans. "You’re something all right, baby, but never bad, I promise."

Justin gave JC a big grin and was about to say something when Chris said, "You should have let him keep going, Infant. It was just getting really interesting."

JC blushed as Justin looked over at Chris, grinning. "Stare at your own guys, Chris. I’m sure either one would be happy to oblige."

Lance and Joey both laughed at that and JC gave Justin a quick kiss before he moved away to walk back over towards the kitchen with Justin following him.

Joey chuckled and said, "And if you’re a good, Critter, you’ll even get to stare at both of us."

Chris grinned at Joey. "Good point, I always did say two heads was better than one."

Lance and Justin laughed at that as Joey made a face at the bad pun. "I think I’ll pretend you didn’t say that."

JC snorted, trying to hide a grin as he sat back down by Lance.

Justin went to the refrigerator to get a drink, making a face when he saw they were out of Mountain Dew. "Josh?" Justin asked, looking over the fridge door. "We’re out of Dew, you want a Dr. Pepper or a glass of water?"

JC looked over at Justin and smiled. "I don’t care, baby. I’ll just drink some of whatever you’re having."

Lance laughed. "As usual." Joey chuckled and nodded.

Justin grinned and took a Dr. Pepper out of the fridge, walking over to sit down in the last empty seat as JC shrugged and said, "Justin’s got good taste."

Justin flopped down next to JC with a big grin and popped the tab on the can he held, leering at JC. "Boy do I ever."

The others laughed while JC blushed and Justin took a long drink from the can, his dark blue eyes sparkling with suppressed laughter.

Lance grinned. "I don’t know about y’all, but I’m getting up early so I’m going to bed. We can sort all this stuff in the morning before we pack up to head out to Pawley’s." Lance looked at Chris and Joey, raising an eyebrow as he asked, "Sound good to y’all?"

Joey nodded as Chris smirked at Lance and said, "Anything that involves getting you into a bed sounds good to me, babe, you know that."

JC and Justin both laughed while Mike and Charlie grinned, Charlie managing to only blush a little bit.

Lance chuckled and stood, moving around behind JC to lean over his shoulder and give him a kiss on the cheek, surprising Mike and Charlie. "G’night, Josh," Lance said, smiling at JC before he moved over to Justin kissed his cheek too, then grinned at Justin. "That’s so much easier to do when you’re sitting down."

Justin laughed, leaning back a bit to look up at Lance. "I can’t help it your legs are short, Scoop."

Lance made a face at Justin. "I’m not that short, you’re just too tall."

JC grinned. "I don’t have any problems kissing him."

Lance snorted. "Josh, sweetheart, that’s because you’re too tall, too."

Chris grinned and stood as he asked, "What about Joe-bear? He’s as tall as Josh."

Lance grinned and moved over to stand between Chris and Joey’s chair, looking at Joey. "I never have a problem kissing Joe."

Joey stood and stepped towards Lance with a chuckle, slipping a hand under the open denim shirt and sliding it around behind Lance’s back, obviously bending down a bit as he kissed Lance, then he pulled back slightly. "That’s because I know you’re short, baby," Joey said with a grin.

Lance snorted and looked over at Charlie. "Does Mike tell you you’re short too, or does everyone just like telling me that?"

Charlie chuckled but didn’t answer, not about to point out he was even shorter than Lance, or explain that he actually liked being little.

Chris moved up behind Lance, resting both hands on Lance’s hips and putting his chin on Lance’s shoulder to grin at Joey. "I know Joe never tells _me_ I’m short. I guess it’s ‘cause I’m taller than you are."

Joey chuckled as Lance made an annoyed noise and turned to look at Chris. "You are not, we’re the same height and you know it." Lance conveniently ignored that he was looking up at Chris ever so slightly.

"Not when you’re barefoot, baby." Chris grinned and added, "If we were the same height you’d be looking me eye-to-eye right now. Admit it."

Lance looked at Chris for a moment then grinned suddenly. "Okay, so maybe I am short, but I’m still _bigger_ than you." He gave Chris’ surprised face a quick kiss and slipped out from between Chris and Joey to start towards their room while JC and Justin laughed.

Joey chuckled and Chris looked at him a bit wide-eyed as he asked, "Did he just say what I think he said?!"

"Yep," Joey said, grinning, "And he meant it just like your dirty mind thought, too."

Chris snorted and started across the room to the open door where Lance had already disappeared. "Well, we’ll just have to go see about that, now won’t we?"

Joey laughed and followed Chris. "I think that was the whole idea, babe. Night guys." Joey waved over his shoulder at them and went into their room, shutting the door behind him.

 

 


	41. Chapter 41

 

~~~~41~~~~

 

JC and Justin grinned at each other, then JC looked across the table at Mike and Charlie and gestured at the pile of DVDs Lance had made as he went through some of the bags. "Since it’s after midnight and Lance wants to get up early tomorrow, we’re going to bed too. You two are welcome to watch any of those in here or in your room."

Justin grinned and added, "Or you could just do like us and go get freaky until you’re tired enough to sleep."

Charlie blushed at that but Mike grinned, thinking it sounded like a great idea.

JC chuckled and looks at Justin. "Baby, be good. Mike embarrasses him enough without your help."

Charlie gave JC a wry grin, still a bit pink. "I’m getting used to it, even if I can’t keep from blushing."

Mike chuckled and patted Charlie’s knee as JC grinned at Charlie.

"I’ve decided that I haven’t got much to blush about,” JC said. “I’m a really lucky guy and it’s just my best friends who are hearing stuff. I mean, they already know I cry like a girl during sappy movies, so it’s not like I’m trying to impress them. Besides, it can be fun to tease each other, even about sex."

Charlie blushed a bit more. "How can you stand it?"

"It was self defense at first. Justin has no shame." Justin opened his mouth and JC gave him a little grin and said, "Baby, don’t try to deny it." Justin stuck his tongue out, making JC chuckle before he looked back over at Charlie and went on, "As I was saying, Justin has no sense of shame and Chris kept asking leading questions that Jup would answer without even thinking twice since we’ve always done that. I was blushing incessantly that first day when Chris and then Justin and the other two teased me before we’d even done more than kiss, trying to come up with decent comebacks and failing. I was embarrassed to talk about sex with them at all until it finally dawned on me I have nothing to be ashamed of. I mean, I’m in love with one of the most gorgeous men in America and he loves me too, and I am _so_ proud to be able to say that. All the teasing just lets us show how happy we are together to everyone else."

Justin added, "And that’s why I like teasing him. I finally get to show exactly how I feel. Well, at least part of the time."

Mike nodded then, making Charlie look at him in surprise. "Is that why you like teasing me?" Charlie asked.

Mike smiled and reached for Charlie’s hand. "A good-sized part of it, yeah. I’ve never been able to let anyone know how very lucky I feel to have you except you, even though I wanted to tell the whole world. Now I can do something as simple as say I love you without having to worry about anyone besides you hearing me, and I don’t have to fight every minute we’re together to hide the fact I want you from everyone around us. You’re the most important person in the world to me, and I’m not even a little embarrassed to let it show." Mike looked at JC and Justin then and they both nodded, smiling.

"Yeah," JC said, "it’s obvious you love Charlie more than anything, and that you’re best friends, and really happy together."

Charlie was thoughtful a long moment, first looking at JC and Justin and then at Mike. "I’m not embarrassed that I love you, Mike, or that I want you." Charlie blushed a bit at that but went on without pausing. "I just need some time to get used to showing it in public."

Mike smiled and squeezed Charlie’s hand. "I know, baby. Just remember when I tease you that I’m not trying to rush you or embarrass you, I’m just happy that I don’t have to hide how I feel anymore."

Charlie nodded, giving Mike a little smile.

JC smiled at them and said, "Justin and I had pretty much this same discussion with the guys over pizza Saturday night, after we were finally together the first time." JC grinned. "Well, okay, it was Sunday morning really, really early. I know how you feel Charlie, and I know how hard it is to show how you feel after hiding it for so long, but if you can stop worrying about what anyone else might think and just do what you feel, you’ll be a lot happier. I did, and I am."

Charlie looked at JC, bemused. "That’s right, it _has_ been just a few days that you two have been together. I keep forgetting that. You’re so comfortable with each other that it seems like you’ve been together for years."

Justin chuckled at that and JC grinned at him, then looked back over at Charlie. "We were always closer than most friends, even back on the Mouse Club. I mean, it’s never been unusual for us to share even a _toothbrush_ when we were together, and when we were apart we talked almost every day even if it was just a few minutes to let each other know we were okay. The most time I’ve ever spent without Justin was in just the last six months when I was being so stupid about Brit, and I thought about him so often then that I might as well have been with him." Justin gave JC’s hand a squeeze and JC smiled softly at him, then looked back over at Charlie and went on. "This ring—" He lifted his left hand, still holding Justin’s right, and turned them so the couple across the table could see the sliver band before he lowered their hands back into Justin’s lap. "—is new, yeah, but the feeling behind it has been what kept me going for years now. Does that make sense?"

Charlie nodded. "Yeah, it does. I’ve loved Mike more than anyone or anything for about the same length of time, I’ve just had to hide it because of how other people would have reacted."

"Well," Justin said, smiling, " _we_ won’t react badly, I promise. You don’t ever have to worry about that when you’re with us. We’re more likely to cheer you on."

Charlie chuckled, his cheeks turning a bit pink. "I’ve noticed that." He was quiet a moment, obviously thinking again, and then he asked, "How can you five share everything like you do? I mean, isn’t it embarrassing to let even your best friends see some things?"

Justin looked at JC, who gave Justin a wry little grin and then looked at Charlie. "We’ve always known everything about each other – well, except that we were all hiding the fact we were in love – and we share _everything_. The way we live most of the year, we’ve had to. We’ve all slept together more than once, we’ve had to take showers together before shows, and we have to change clothes together almost every day. Most of the time when Justin kisses me I forget everything else, but it can still be a little difficult for me to relax sometimes, I have to admit. I just remind myself that it’s just the guys who’re watching and they know what we do together anyway, so there’s really nothing to hide."

JC smiled at Justin, and then looked at Charlie again as he went on. "I’m getting used to it already. In the car on the way here Sunday I think I probably blushed to my toes when Chris started to give Joe a blowjob in the seat in front of us, even though we couldn’t see anything. Then Justin woke up and started kissing me, and I was enjoying holding him too much to blush at the noises the other two were making. When we made love in the back seat later that night I didn’t stop to think, I just wanted Justin right then and I knew he felt the same way," JC finished, his cheeks a little pink.

Charlie thought about that, blushing, while Mike asked, "Are you in love with the other guys too?"

Charlie gave him a surprised look, remembering when Mike had asked the others if they were in love with JC and wondering why Mike wanted to know.

JC didn’t hesitate to answer him, saying almost the same thing Chris had, even though JC hadn’t heard Chris say it. "It’s impossible to know them like we do and not love them. Lance takes care of us, all of us, and loves us more than anyone or anything, even his own family. Chris brought us all together and made our dreams come true, and he loves us just as much as Lance does even though he might not show it the same way. Joey loves us and protects us and reminds us of what keeps us all together when things get rough, and Justin spends every day showing us that this life that can be a lot of fun if we just remember to enjoy it."

"And Josh is the beautiful, sweet guy we all love who sings like an angel and helps us road-dogs remember we do this because of one simple thing. We love making music together, not how many records we sell or how many fans scream at us," Justin added, smiling at JC, who smiled back before they both looked back over at Mike and Charlie.

Mike smiled. "Do you even realize you both said ‘we’ every time?"

JC looked surprised and then grinned. "Well, we are a ‘we’. I know Justin loves them too, and the guys love us both, and we’re all perfectly happy together."

"So you guys are a package deal,” Charlie half-asked. “All five of you?"

JC was surprised that Charlie even felt the need to ask that. "Of course! We have been since Lance walked into that audition so scared he could barely talk and somehow managed to sing for us anyway. That man has a beautiful voice to go with the fact he’s such a great guy, and we all decided right then that he was staying no matter what Lou wanted. Over the years he’s proven a million times how very lucky we were to find him, and even though he was great back then he’s just gotten better and better."

Justin nodded as he added, "We were serious all those times we’ve told people that we’d all be together in twenty years, even if we’re just playing music for ourselves in Chris’ basement or something. We love music and we love each other, and we’re all committed to staying together, no matter what. We were even before everything that happened in the last week, and now we’re closer than ever."

Mike smiled as Charlie said, "You’re so lucky, all of you."

JC smiled and nodded as Justin said, "I’m one of the luckiest guys in the world. I have the best friends a guy could ask for and I get to live out my dreams every day."

"And we all consider both of you friends too,” JC added, “not just people we hired to fill a job. We want you to be happy working _with_ us, not just for us."

"Thank you," Charlie said, smiling. "You’ve made us feel welcome."

Mike nodded, grinning suddenly. "And we’ll be good friends now and head over to our own room so you two can go have fun. How early do you think Lance meant he was getting up?"

JC chuckled. "With Scoop there’s no telling, but I wouldn’t bother with getting up at daybreak unless you just want a few hours together before getting dressed around nine."

Mike grinned and looked at Charlie, who blushed a bit as he smiled back at him.

Justin grinned at them both. "I’ll have a wake up call at seven, but Josh and I probably won’t be dressed until after nine."

Charlie gave them a wry little grin and blushed as he admitted, "That’s what we did this morning."

JC grinned at him. "It’s a great way to wake up, isn’t it?"

Charlie blushed even more. "Yeah, it is. Mike and I’ve missed out on that because we didn’t want anyone to realize we were together. It was really nice to actually stay with him all night."

Mike nodded, grinning at Charlie. "Amazing, even."

Charlie blushed even more and stood, looking at JC and Justin. "G’night, you two. Have fun."

JC grinned at him as Mike stood too and Justin said, "We will, you guys enjoy yourselves."

"And sleep good when you finally get too tired to play," JC added with a grin as Charlie started towards the door to the other suite, his face flaming.

Mike chuckled and started after Charlie, looking over his shoulder at JC and Justin. "We will. Night." Mike disappeared through the doorway, leaving it open.

Justin looked at JC, grinning. "We’re alone.”

JC smiled. "I know."

Justin’s grin got a little bit wider and he said, "Really, completely alone."

JC chuckled, amused. "Yeah, baby, we’re alone and our room is right over there," he gestured across the room, "with a bed and everything."

Justin stood up and tugged gently on JC’s hand. "C’mon sweetheart, you and me alone with a bed sounds like a great idea."

JC chuckled again and stood, letting Justin lead him to their room and closing the door behind them only for it to open again a moment later for Justin to go take the CD he’d bought that night out of the stereo and then make a detour through the bathroom before he went in and closed the door again.

 

 

 

Chris stretched lazily, laying flat on his back next to Joey and Lance and grinning at the ceiling. "That was fun."

Lance laughed and lifted his head off Joey’s chest to look at Chris as Joey propped his own head up with a pillow to watch them both. "Fun?" Lance asked with a little grin. "Is that all you can say?"

Chris rolled to his side to face Lance across Joey’s chest, grinning smugly. "After making love to you, you’re lucky I can talk at all, much less after Joe did me too. I’m still flyin’ somewhere around Jupiter."

Joey chuckled and shifted slightly to get a bit more comfortable, one arm around Lance and the other draped across his own stomach. "Just make sure you don’t come down too hard, I don’t want you waking us up when you finally land."

Lance giggled softly at that, making Chris and Joey both look at him in surprise. "What?" Lance asked, his green eyes bright with laughter and something more. "I didn’t say anything!"

Chris smirked. "You _giggled_."

Lance snorted, his eyes still sparkling. "You’re gettin’ old, sweetheart, you’re hearin’ things." Joey laughed at that as Lance smiled sweetly at Chris and added, "Turn off the light and get the covers, wouldya please?"

Chris scowled and sat up, reaching for the bedclothes piled at the foot of the bed. "I wasn’t hearing things! You giggled, Bassman, admit it."

Lance grinned and shook his head. "I’m not admittin’ nothin’."

Chris made a face and pulled the sheet and lighter blanket up, leaving the heavy comforter at the foot of the bed. "I know I wasn’t hearing things." He paused, looking at Joey. "Joe-bear, tell me I wasn’t hearing things."

Joey chuckled and closed his eyes. "I’m asleep."

Chris made an annoyed noise and got up to turn off the light, climbing back into bed as he said, "You’re supposed to back me up, Joe! I know you heard him too." Chris laid down on his side close to Joey, draping one arm over Joey’s stomach as Joey’s arm went around his shoulders.

Joey chuckled softly and then watched as Lance leaned across his chest to give Chris a long, slow kiss.

"Night, sweetheart,” Lance murmured when they finally parted, smiling. “I love you."

Chris smiled, barely able to make out Lance’s bright eyes in the darkness. "I love you too, baby."

Lance shifted up to kiss Joey and then said, "Love you, Joe."

Lance laid his head back down on Joey’s chest as Joey gave Lance a squeeze and replied quietly, "I love you too, darlin’."

Chris leaned up to kiss Joey, then laid his head back on Joey’s shoulder, chuckling.

"What’s so funny?" Joey asked.

"Our baby boy is turnin’ us both into saps like him, Joe-bear. I remember way back when you and I used to have sex until we couldn’t move, then collapse for a few hours of sleep so we could go again, and we’d go _weeks_ without ever saying we loved each other. Now it seems like we say it all the time."

Joey chuckled. "I know what you mean, Critter."

It was quiet for a long moment and then Lance said softly, "You don’t have to say it just because I do."

Joey lifted his head to look at Lance as Chris did the same, both looking surprised. "Why do you think we wouldn’t want to, baby?" Joey asked, frowning slightly into the darkness.

Lance shrugged, not looking up at them. "I dunno, but if you never did until I was around, maybe you just don’t."

Chris snorted softly and shook his head, still looking at Lance. "No, we were just too stupid to say it before. I _love_ hearing you tell me you love me, and I love telling you the same thing, both of you. I love you both, with all my heart and soul."

"That’s right, baby," Joey said, rubbing Lance’s back. "I love you more than I ever thought I could love anyone but Chris. I _want_ to tell you how I feel, you need to hear it just as much as I need to say it."

Lance smiled softly at Chris, rubbing his cheek against Joey’s chest as he tightened his arms around Joey. "I need to say it, too. It always feels good to tell you both that I love you."

Joey gave Lance a squeeze and then Chris settled back down against Joey’s other side as he said quietly, "It sure does, baby."

Lance took Chris’ hand and laced their fingers, laying their hands on Joey’s chest between them and then looking into the darkness in silence for another long moment before he finally admitted, "I _did_ giggle. Like a friggin’ girl."

Chris and Joey both laughed.

 

 

 

"What’d Brit ask you that made you blush so red earlier?" JC asked quietly, curled up against Justin’s chest with both arms around him as they listened to the CD by Hoku, which was still playing quietly.

Justin stroked JC’s back, smiling. "She wanted to know if we had decided what flavor of lube was our favorite, and when I said no she wanted to know if we had enough to last until Friday. I told her we had plenty, and then she started asking me if we wanted any _toys_."

JC giggled softly. "You’re kidding."

Justin shook his head, chuckling. "No, babe, I’m not kidding. Wade has _totally_ ruined her. She was asking if we wanted things that I just barely knew _exist_ , much less what to do with them."

JC grinned. "She knows you haven’t had time to try everything yet."

Justin snorted quietly, shifting a bit to pull JC just a little closer. "I haven’t tried any of the stuff she was asking about, but I gather she has and had fun with it. Brit is turning into a kinky little heifer."

JC chuckled. "Baby, you told me yourself that any girl who dances around mostly naked with a _snake_ wrapped around her neck has to be pretty kinky."

Justin laughed softly. "Oh, that’s _tame_ compared to some of the stuff she suggested."

JC lifted his head a bit to look at Justin, eyebrows up as he grinned and asked, "So what were these things? Now you’ve got me curious."

Justin chuckled. "Don’t worry, you’ll find out. She, Wade, and Danny are going shopping for us tomorrow."

JC laughed and shifted, moving up the bed a bit so they were face to face. "So you’re not going to tell me?"

Justin grinned and rolled JC to his back, moving above him as he said, "Nope, you can wait for the box and then show me what the stuff’s for."

Justin ducked his head and began nibbling at JC’s neck, making JC giggle as he lifted both hands to run them up Justin’s sides, tickling him until Justin finally squirmed away, laughing.

"Cheater," Justin said, laughing as he moved closer again, the light from the lamp making his dark blue eyes shine.

JC grinned up at Justin and slid his hands up Justin’s back, moving at the same time to wrap his legs loosely around Justin’s waist. "No, baby, just turnabout, which we both know is always fair play."

Justin snorted. "I’ll show _you_ turnabout."

JC smirked at him. "Bring it on, baby. I can take anything you can dish--"

Justin leaned down to kiss him, cutting him off before he could finish.

 

 

 

Charlie flipped off the light in the bathroom with a yawn and walked back out to climb into bed with Mike, smiling when Mike wrapped his arms around him and pulled Charlie back against his chest even though Mike was still mostly asleep. Charlie had discovered pretty quickly that if he left it up to Mike he either wound up being Mike’s teddy-bear to cuddle with for the night or a full-body pillow, and he had decided just as fast that he preferred the cuddling. Mike was heavy.

It was nearly two am and Charlie would have been asleep too if he hadn’t had to use the bathroom, but now that he was awake he found himself thinking instead of dozing off again. The Joey/Chris/Lance triangle simply mystified him, especially since Chris had evidently done something terrible that both Lance and Joey didn’t want him to talk or even think about anymore. That, and Joey and Chris had already had matching rings that looked new other than maybe being a bit darkened from age, but Chris said it was Joey and _Lance_ who had been together longer when he was on the phone with Brit. Why had they had the rings if they weren’t together?

Then there was JC – Charlie had to consciously remind himself not to even think of him as Josh, since that would lead to him calling JC that eventually – who had been through a lot in the last year from what little he understood, mostly because of a guy Charlie vaguely remembered was on the Mickey Mouse Club. From what Charlie had heard today, it was pretty obvious JC had been hurt both physically and emotionally by this guy, and Charlie had to wonder how anyone could do that to someone like JC. He was sweet as they come, and beautiful, and it was obvious he wouldn’t hurt a fly; hurting him was akin to kicking a puppy.

Justin and the others obviously hated this Tony guy for hurting JC and Charlie was inclined to agree, but Justin didn’t seem to mind that JC had been with him to begin with, which made no sense to Charlie at all. Charlie would be upset if Mike was with someone else – well, okay, _devastated_ was a more accurate description – and he couldn’t imagine loving someone so much that he wouldn’t mind knowing they had slept with someone he hated.

"Char, quit thinkin’ so loud," Mike mumbled softly near his ear then, startling Charlie.

"I’m sorry, love," Charlie said softly as he stroked Mike’s arm, which was snug around his waist. "I thought you were asleep."

"I was kinda," Mike murmured, his voice low and rumbly with sleep as he pulled his knees up a bit closer behind Charlie’s. "You were layin’ there all tense and still, though, and you should be sleepin’. What’re you thinkin’ so hard about?"

Charlie shrugged slightly. "Nothing. Everything."

Mike chuckled softly and kissed the back of Charlie’s neck before he murmured softly, "One or the other, babe. You can’t do both." Mike kissed below Charlie’s ear and then started kissing along his neck towards his shoulder.

Charlie smiled, shifting enough so he could turn his head to look at Mike. "It wasn’t important, love. I was just thinking about today."

Mike stopped kissing Charlie’s shoulder and said quietly, "You were thinking about Josh."

Charlie's eyes widened a bit in surprise, but then he nodded. "Yeah, and Justin. I don’t know how they’re able to cope with all JC has been through."

Mike smiled at Charlie in the darkness. "Yeah you do, baby. It’s called love."

"You think it’s that simple?" Charlie asked just as softly.

Mike moved up on one elbow so he could lean over and give Charlie a deep kiss, exploring his mouth lazily with his tongue before he finally pulled away and smiled down at Charlie. "I know it is."

Charlie smiled and slipped his arms around Mike’s neck, pulling him in for another kiss as Mike’s free hand began to move slowly over Charlie’s body, teasing a nipple before it ghosted down his side to his hip and rolled him towards Mike. Charlie chuckled softly into the kiss and followed the pull until he was sprawled on top of Mike, kissing him as Mike’s hands roamed.

They didn’t need that much sleep anyway.

 

 


	42. Chapter 42

 

~~~~42~~~~

 

Mike groaned when the phone rang the next morning, rolling away from Charlie to answer it groggily. "Hello?"

"Good morning, Mr. Kohl. It’s seven am. Would you like to have coffee or breakfast sent up?" a too loud, too perky female voice asked, making him grimace. Nobody should be that cheerful at seven am. Especially when he’d only had a few hours sleep.

"No, thank you," Mike answered as Charlie rolled off the bed and walked into the bathroom.

"Have a good morning then, sir!" the girl answered happily.

"Thank you," Mike answered, and then he hung up. He stood and stretched with both hands over his head, then walked over to look out the balcony doors, thinking about how much he’d miss the ocean when they left. He couldn’t remember a time when he hadn’t slept within a mile of the ocean, except for a few camping trips with Charlie.

Charlie came out of the bathroom a moment later and walked up behind him, sliding his arms around Mike’s waist as he kissed his shoulder. "G’mornin’," Charlie said softly. "Sleep good?"

Mike smiled and turned, making Charlie step back a little before Mike pulled him closer again. "Yeah, Char, I did. I didn’t sleep _much_ , but I slept good."

Charlie chuckled quietly as he stepped into Mike’s arms. "We really should have slept a little more."

Mike snorted softly. " _I_ wasn’t the one who woke up at two am and couldn’t sleep."

Charlie looked up at him, smiling. "Maybe not, but you _were_ the one that decided we ought to make love again since we were both awake."

Mike smiled. "Well, yeah—"

"And then," Charlie interrupted with a grin, "we were awake for over an hour because someone decided to tease me."

"Gotta admit, it was more fun than sleeping," Mike replied, his brown eyes twinkling with suppressed laughter.

"Yep," Charlie replied, grinning at him, then added, "We aren’t sleeping now either."

Mike grinned and leaned down to give him a slow, thorough kiss, then pulled back. "Hold that thought, baby. I’ve  gotta go take a leak."

Mike pulled away and crossed to the bathroom as Charlie laughed softly and watched him go. Only a moment after Mike disappeared through the doorway Charlie grinned and headed towards the bathroom himself, thinking that taking a shower together could be the perfect way to start their day.

 

 

 

JC woke up because something was tickling his nose. He made a face as he blew at it softly and wrinkled his nose, but it didn’t go away so he moved his head, which only made it worse. He finally opened his eyes then and scooted down the bed a bit so that his nose was against Justin’s neck instead of his hair, then he closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep again.

Justin loved to hold JC as he slept, but they had ended up sleeping with JC spooned up behind Justin twice before. Both times JC had awakened in exactly the same way, with a face full of those adorable but annoying curls. After laying there awake for a few minutes he lifted his head to look across the room at the clock, wondering if he should even bother trying to go back to sleep – he wasn’t at all sleepy – and he was surprised to see the time.

Justin had left a wake-up call for seven o’clock, JC was sure of it, but the phone hadn’t rung and it was well after seven. He shrugged and snuggled back down against Justin’s back, thinking that he’d just stay there and enjoy holding him for a little while. He’d dreamed of waking up with Justin in his arms – or more precisely waking up in _Justin_ _’_ _s_ arms – for years, but the reality was better than any of the dreams had ever been.

JC had just barely gotten comfortable again when Justin made a soft noise and moved slightly, then asked, "Wha’ time’s it?"

JC smiled and kissed the back of Justin’s neck. "Almost seven thirty."

"Huh." Justin laid still for a moment and then turned over onto his back, looking at JC. "I thought I called for a wake-up at seven."

JC stroked a couple of Justin’s curls back from his face, smiling. "You did."

"Oh." Justin just looked at JC for a moment and then turned towards JC even more. He slid is arms around JC and kissed him, lingering for a long while before he finally pulled back to smile at him. "Mornin’."

JC gave him a sweet smile and carefully ran his fingers through Justin’s touseled curls as he replied, "Good mornin’, baby."

Justin gave JC another kiss, and then let go of him to roll over and sit up. "I have _got_ to use the bathroom, then I’m gonna call the front desk and find out why we didn’t get our wake-up call."

JC propped himself up on one elbow with a chuckle to watch Justin stand and grab a pair of sweats off the floor and start to put them on. "Baby, it’s not like it was _important_ that we get up twenty minutes ago."

Justin turned to give JC a quick smile and then started towards the door. "Maybe not, but it might be the next time they forget to wake somebody up. I’ll be right back."

JC chuckled again, shaking his head, and flopped to his back on the bed to stretch slowly, joints popping as he let out a little groan. He held very still as soon as he had stretched fully, staying that way for a slow count of ten before he relaxed again, sprawled inelegantly across most of the bed. After a few minutes he finally rolled to the side of the bed to change the CD and started laughing instead.

Justin walked back in then and gave JC a funny look as he kicked out of the sweatpants he was wearing. "Josh, sweetheart, what’s so funny?"

JC pointed at the bedside table, grinning. "That."

Justin moved around the bed enough to see what JC was pointing at and then said, "Oh." He paused a moment, then grinned and said, "Oops."

JC giggled and reached to pick up the receiver from where it was laying on top of the little portable stereo and hung it up as he said, "Next time pay more attention when you hang up the phone, baby."

Justin climbed onto the bed and moved up behind JC to kiss his shoulder and then nuzzle his ear as he teased, "I _was_ a little bit distracted y’know, you were—"

The phone rang then, interrupting him, and JC picked it up as Justin pulled away from him slightly. "Hello?" JC said.

"Good morning, Mr. Chasez. This is your wake up call," an overly-polite female voice said. "Should I send up some coffee or something from our breakfast menu?"

JC grinned. "No thanks."

"No problem sir. If you need anything be sure to call the front desk."

"Thank you, I will," JC replied, then hung up the phone a moment later and turned towards Justin, who was leaning against the headboard and leering at him. JC moved towards him with a little smile and moved to sit astride Justin’s thighs with his hands on Justin’s shoulders. " _You_ asked for the wake-up call, so why did she think Mr. Chasez would answer the phone?"

Justin grinned and moved his hands to JC’s waist, tugging him closer. "Well, that _might_ be because I told her I was Mr. Chasez."

JC grinned and let his hands drift slowly down Justin’s chest. "And why would you do that?"

Justin lifted his left hand from JC’s hip and fanned his fingers between them, wriggling them to show off the silver band he wore. "Because I am," he said with a smirk, dropping his hand back to JC’s waist and easily pulling the brunette closer. "As far as I’m concerned, anyhow."

JC chuckled and asked, "What if I wanted to be Mr. Timberlake?"

Justin smirked, smug. "Baby, there can only be one Timberlake."

JC laughed and lightly shoved at Justin’s chest. "You’re full of it, you realize that, right?"

"I’m not yet, no, but I hope to be pretty soon," Justin said with a smirk, sliding his hands up JC’s back to pull him in for a kiss.

"Hmm, sounds like a plan I could live with," JC said with grin, leaning to meet him.

 

 

 

Chris woke up slowly, wondering why he was feeling sort of cool until he realized he had only the light sheet over him, and that even though there was a warm body nearby, it wasn’t curled up against him like it ought to be. He lifted his head, propping himself up on his elbows to look at the other two men in the bed, halfway annoyed until he saw them, and then he smiled.

Sometime during the night Joey and Lance had switched places so that Lance, who was adamant about not sleeping in the middle, was in between Chris and Joey. The blanket that had started the night spread over all of them was haphazardly draped across Joey and Lance, tangled around one of Lance’s legs and leaving their upper bodies bare, and the sheet had somehow wound up only on Chris’ side of the bed. Lance was on his side facing Chris, and Joey was spooned up against Lance’s back with both arms around the blond and his nose buried in Lance’s hair.

Chris shifted to his side carefully, forgetting he was cold as he watched them sleep with a little smile, wishing he had Joey’s camera.

He watched them for almost ten minutes before he remembered that Lance had brought Joey’s instant camera to the room, and after barely a moment’s thought he carefully slipped out of bed to go get it from Lance’s gym bag. He returned with a little grin and flipped the camera open, switching off the flash before he took a picture of them since he thought it was bright enough in the room with the sunlight coming in the open balcony door.

Chris stifled a giggle and waited breathlessly a moment to be sure the noise hadn’t woken them up, then took a few more pictures from different angles, his initial impulse – getting a few pics of Lance and Joey to compete with the dozens that Joey had of JC and Justin – fading into just wanting to capture the moment. Joey’s face was almost hidden in the first picture, but in the second one you could just barely see the peaceful look on his face, and his tanned skin glowed golden in the sunlight, contrasting sharply with Lance’s pale skin.

Chris took pictures until the camera was out of film, and then he moved over to dresser where he’d been laying the pictures as he took them. A soft, loving smile appeared on his face as he looked at the snapshots and took in how beautiful Lance and Joey looked together. Each picture was a little bit different, but the love that the two men had for each other was obvious in all of them, and Chris was very glad he’d had this chance and remembered the camera. They had started taking instant pictures years ago when bunch of funny pictures they’d taken on the bus were sold by the people who developed the film, and that habit was an even better idea now, since there was a good chance they’d take pictures of each other that were a little too, well, gay.

Chris grinned to himself at that thought and looked through the pictures again, picking out two that had captured the soft smiles on their faces and the way Lance’s hair looked almost like a halo against the pillow as he carefully stacked the others. He laid the two he liked best aside and walked over to tuck the others into the magazine in the outer pocket of his suitcase that already had photographs stuck into it in various places, including a few he’d grabbed from different photo shoots and quite a lot instant pictures taken by Joey. He moved to his gym bag then and dug out the film he’d grabbed from the bus, then put it in the camera and put the camera back where he’d found it before he picked up the two he’d kept aside, looking down at them with a happy grin.

After a few minutes Chris grabbed his wallet and tucked them into it, wishing that things were different and he could have prints made but knowing they’d have to stick to instant photos as he put his wallet on the dresser. He had just turned back towards the bed when he finally realized he really needed to use the bathroom and changed directions, shivering and idly thinking that turning the air conditioner down should be his next step as he hurried to the bathroom. He used the bathroom quickly and then paused to brush his teeth – there was a good chance he’d get lucky after all, and no reason to inflict his morning breath on somebody else – before he headed back to bed, forgetting the air conditioner when he glanced at the clock and saw the time.

Lance had said he wanted up early, but it was only a little after eight o’clock so Chris figured he could let them sleep a bit longer and it still be early enough, surely. He didn’t get to watch them sleep very often, especially Lance, and he intended to enjoy every minute of it he could so he continued over to the bed, climbing up and carefully sitting down Indian style to wrap himself in the sheet and watch the other two sleep, smiling. They wouldn’t agree with him, he knew, but they were beautiful to him and he loved to look at them, though he usually did it while they slept so he didn’t have to try and explain the sappy little grin he invariably got on his face.

Lance woke up slowly a while later, not even bothering to open his eyes as he smiled, thinking that the familiar feeling of Joey’s arms loosely draped around him and the soft puff of breath at the back of his neck was a nice thing to wake up to. He laid there like that for a long moment, just enjoying being held, before he opened his eyes to see Chris sitting in front of him on the bed all wrapped up in a sheet, smiling and watching him.

"Mornin’, beautiful," Chris whispered, barely making a sound as he leaned forward to kiss Lance gently, taking his time.

When Chris finally pulled away Lance smiled at him, his green eyes sparkling as he whispered softly, "G’morning. What are you doing up?"

"Watching you sleep," Chris answered with a loving smile, his voice so faint that Lance could barely hear him.

"What time is it?" Joey asked then, his voice soft and rumbly with sleep as Chris looked at him in surprise.

"Eight forty-one," Chris answered after a quick glance at the clock, his voice a bit louder than he’d spoken before. "Did I wake you, Joe-bear?"

Chris watched with a grin as Joey nuzzled the back of Lance’s neck instead of answering, making Lance squirm slightly as Joey’s arms tightened around him, pulling him back more firmly against him. Joey moved to kiss the side of Lance’s neck while one hand slid slowly down Lance’s stomach and under the blanket. Lance let out a little surprised noise then, and Joey growled softly as he against rocked his hips forward against Lance’s ass and then gently nipped his collarbone, the hand he’d put under the blanket beginning to move slowly.

"God, Joe," Lance said, arching back against him with a little groan, "I guess we _did_ wake you up."

Joey chuckled and moved his hand under the blanket again, drawing a gasp from Lance as he rocked back against Joey, encouraging Joey to move against him again. Lance made a soft noise in his throat then and reached back to put a hand on Joey’s hip, urging him to keep moving as Chris licked his lips and wondered if they’d notice if he took a few more pictures.

"You keep that up and we won’t be waitin’ for your shower this mornin’, baby," Joey growled softly in Lance’s ear before he gently sucked at the sensitive skin behind it.

Lance moved back against Joey again as he closed his eyes and growled, "Fuck the shower."

Chris grinned, his brown eyes sparkling with suppressed laughter. "Don’t you mean fuck _you_ , Scoop?"

Lance opened his eyes to look at Chris for a second, then Joey moved against him again and he closed his eyes, shuddering as he managed to say, "That too."

Chris chuckled, and Joey might have too if he’d wanted to give Lance a chance to change his mind. Joey moved his hips slowly against Lance instead, nibbling at Lance’s jaw as Lance moaned softly and arched back against Joey, wordlessly asking for more.

 

 

 

Charlie and Mike came out of their room just after nine-thirty, walking through the still-open door into the guys’ suite to say good morning and see what they were going to do for breakfast. They didn’t see anyone when they walked in, but the door to JC and Justin’s room was open and there was an open can of Dr. Pepper and half a slice of cheesecake on the counter, so somebody was obviously awake. Mike and Charlie exchanged grins and sat down at the table on the side facing the kitchen so their back was to the bedrooms just in case whoever was up wasn’t dressed, and Charlie had just moved a couple of bags to one side and picked up the breakfast menu when they both heard a door open.

"Hurry up, baby, I want my turn," JC said as he left the bathroom wearing only a pair of sweats, the sound of running water loud in the quiet suite.

"Join me," Justin whined and Chris and Mike exchanged a grin.

JC chuckled softly, still looking into the bathroom. "No, baby. If I did it’d be another hour before we get dressed, and it’s _already_ after nine. The guys are already awake, and I’m sure Mike and Charlie are too, so just get your shower over with."

"Meanie," Justin said.

JC shut the bathroom door with a snort, turning to go back to his cheesecake. "Oh, hey guys," JC said when he saw Mike and Charlie sitting at the table, surprised but grinning. "Good morning."

"Morning," Mike replied, grinning.

JC walked into the kitchen and hopped up on the counter. "You two sleep good?" he asked, grinning as he picked up the plate and the fork next to it to take a bite of his cheesecake.

Mike grinned at Charlie, but Charlie was watching JC eat and blushing as he answered, "Yeah, what little we slept."

JC chuckled, swallowing a mouthful of cheesecake. "I know how you feel! It’s a good thing I’ve been an insomniac for so long, or I’d be out now from lack of sleep."

Charlie nodded, smiling. "I’m used to getting around six hours a night, and I’ve got a feeling I’m not going to be getting any more than that."

"Justin doesn’t seem to need any sleep at all, I swear," JC said then. "Maybe it’s a buff guy thing."

Charlie chuckled, nodding again. "It could be, Mike’s the same way."

JC took a drink of the Dr. Pepper on the counter next to him, and then he rather obviously checked Mike out as he said, "Mike’s someone who stays buff just because he’s breathing, I bet, just like Justin. Me, I have to work at it if I wanna be all muscled up, otherwise I look like this." JC gestured at his body. "Y’know, it’s not fair they don’t have to work out _or_ sleep."

Charlie laughed and Mike looked surprised as he asked, "What makes you think you’re not just as buff as me, JC? You’ve got a nice body."

JC snorted. "You’re either being nice or blind, Mike. I’m all hair and lungs, as Wade is fond of saying," JC said, then took another mouthful of his cheesecake.

Mike grinned. "He didn’t."

JC nodded, chewing a moment before he swallowed and said, "He sure did, and more than once, too. Even Justin is always saying I’m skinny. I’m just a scrawny guy, I always have been." JC shrugged and took another bite of cheesecake.

Lance walked out of his room then and crossed the room to the kitchen, listening as Mike shook his head and said, "No way, you’ve got some serious muscle in your shoulders and chest, and great abs. Just because you don’t weigh a lot doesn’t mean you’re not buff."

Lance chuckled and walked over to stand by JC, looking at Mike and Charlie as he picked up JC’s drink. "Tell ’im guys, Josh won’t listen to us," Lance said, then drained JC’s Dr. Pepper.

JC made a face at Lance and swallowed another bite of cheesecake to say, "Now you can get me another."

Lance smiled innocently at JC, leaning sideways against the counter next to him. "Another what, Josh?"

JC snorted. "Don’t play with me, Scoop."

Lance grinned wickedly. "Well, I wasn’t trying to play with you, but I’d be happy to if that’s what you want..."

JC blushed. "Just get me another can and quit being a smartass."

Lance chuckled and patted JC’s knee. "You’re so easy to tease, Josh, sometimes I just can’t resist." He walked over to the fridge and got out two more cans, opening one and setting it by JC before he walked over to sit next to Mike. Lance looked at JC as he opened the can he’d gotten for himself, thinking he was definitely going to enjoy the view if JC was going to walk around without a shirt.

JC noticed the attention and gave Lance a wry look as he took a drink, then asked, "What’s got you in such a good mood this morning, Scoop?" JC took a bite of his cheesecake while he was waiting for an answer, pretty sure he didn’t want to know what that wicked grin was for but unable to resist asking.

Lance smirked. "It’s not Friday night, but I just got laid. Rather well, too."

Mike grinned while Charlie blushed, but JC swallowed quickly and laughed. "Man, that’s not how the song goes!"

Lance’s eyebrows went up and he grinned. "Oh yeah? Listen to Chris and Joe next time we sing it."

JC laughed, thinking it was a joke, then his eyes widened as he realized Lance looked kind of serious. "They don’t."

Lance snorted. "Oh yes they do, especially when they think nobody’s paying attention. Evidently you really aren’t."

"But we sing that in front of kids! _Little girls_!" JC exclaimed, shocked.

Lance laughed. "Yeah, Josh, and your point is?"

JC was speechless at that for a moment before he blurted, "It’s wrong!"

"Mornin’, everyone," Justin said, walking out of the bathroom in jeans and a t-shirt. "What’s wrong?" he asked, grinning at JC.

Lance chuckled. "I just told him about how Joe and Chris sing ‘just got laid’ instead of ‘just got paid’ about half the time, and Josh is scandalized."

Justin laughed and walked over to take a drink of JC’s Dr. Pepper. "Babe, they’ve done that since we started doing the song. You never noticed?"

JC looked at Justin, wide-eyed. "Justin, you know better than to say things like that in front of _children_ , why didn’t you say something?!"

Justin snorted. "Josh, baby, if doing this in front of them—" He stepped away from the counter and put a hand high on each thigh before he did a shoulder shimmy and then a pelvic thrust. “—is okay, how is saying ‘just got laid’ worse?"

JC stared at Justin like he had just grown a second head. "You are _not_ doing that in front of thousands of little girls _ever again_."

Lance looked surprised but Justin just started laughing and hopped up on the counter by JC to give him a quick kiss. "You are so sweet."

JC looked at Justin like he was crazy. "Baby, I’m serious! You can’t, they _arrest_ people for stuff like that! They call it public indecency!"

Lance grinned at that, wondering if JC had ever paid any attention to what the choreographers told him to do or if he just zoned out completely and danced on autopilot.

Justin grinned at JC. " _I_ don’t do that every night on stage."

JC looked surprised and then confused.  "Then why—"

Justin interrupted him, putting a finger on the tip of JC’s nose with a grin as he said, " _You_ do that on stage every night, sweetheart, and a whole lot better than I can, too." Lance, Mike, and Charlie all laughed at the look on JC’s face as Justin went on, "Don’t worry about it, though, those kids who come out to scream at us love every minute of it."

JC stared at Justin for a minute more, then asked, "How is it I never noticed?!"

Justin chuckled and patted JC’s knee. "Because you were off in JC world, where everything is music and dancing and sex doesn’t matter."

Lance grinned at that, thinking Justin had just described spacey!JC pretty well.

JC was quiet for a minute, looking at Justin, and then he picked up his cheesecake again. He toyed at the cheesecake with his fork, looking down at it as he asked, "Was I really that far out in la-la land?"

Justin nodded, smiling wryly. "You just tuned the whole world out, babe. It was weird to watch you turn into a total space-case, but now we’ve got you back." Justin paused and gave JC a kiss on the cheek, then aded, "I missed our Spazz, he’s is my best friend in the world."

JC gave Justin a sweet smile and then took another bite of his cheesecake, and Justin grinned as he looked over at Lance and asked, "So where are your two overage kids?"

Lance chuckled. "When I left after my shower they were both flat on their backs making noises about taking a shower themselves, but knowing them they went back to sleep."

Charlie blushed at that but grinned with Mike as Justin asked, "You tired’em out, huh?"

Lance smirked. "Yep."

JC finished the last of his cheesecake and leaned across Justin to reach for the Dr. Pepper, then turned back to look at Lance with a grin. "Next time let Chris have some sugar first, then you won’t exhaust him so easy."

JC took a drink as Lance grinned smugly and asked, "Who says that wasn’t the whole idea?"

JC snorted a laugh, almost choking on the drink while Mike and Justin laughed and Charlie just grinned.

JC put the can down and hopped off the counter a minute later, then stretched both hands above his head, making joints pop and letting his sweatpants slip downwards to reveal more than a little bit of treasure trail before Justin chuckled and reached out to grab the waistband and tug them back up.

JC felt the pull and looked down, surprised, then grinned over his shoulder at Justin as he let his arms drop. "Thanks, baby. I didn’t even notice."

Justin pulled the waistband to tug JC back towards him until JC was close enough that Justin could kiss him, and then after a long moment he pulled back and grinned down at JC. "You’re welcome."

JC chuckled. "You be good while I’m in the shower. If y’all order breakfast while I’m gone, would you get me some bacon and a cheese omelet?"

Justin grinned. "Sure, babe, no problem."

JC gave him a bright grin and pulled him down for a quick kiss, then headed for their room to get some clothes for the day.

Lance watched him go and then looked at Justin and asked quietly, "Did he eat that whole piece of cheesecake?" Justin nodded happily and then Lance asked in surprise, "And now he wants you to order _more_ breakfast for him?!"

Justin grinned as he said smugly, " _And_ he had some quiche at about four am. He woke up hungry and went looking for food."

Lance laughed, delighted. "Whatever you’re doing, keep up the good work!"

Justin grinned a little wider. "Oh, I will, have no fear."

Charlie looked from one to the other and asked, "Why is it so great for JC to be hungry?"

Justin made a little ‘just a second’ type gesture and hopped off the counter, moving over to the table to start gathering the bags piled on it as JC went from the room he shared with Justin into the bathroom, and then Lance moved over one seat so he could watch Charlie and Mike more easily as Justin finally spoke.

"It started years ago, in Europe. When we began seriously touring, Josh started losing weight and then sleeping all the time, but we were all losing weight then and tired all the time from all the practice and doing four shows a day, so even though I noticed it, I didn’t really worry." Justin shrugged and put the bags he held on the couch, then walked back over towards the table as he continued, "We went on like that for months, and then one night Scoop collapsed on stage." Justin paused to look at Mike and Charlie then as he asked, "Do you two know anything about that?"

Charlie shook his head while Mike said, "Not much, just that he had a heart problem of some kind."

Lance gave them a wry grin. "I wish I’d only had it back then. It still gives me trouble every once in a while."

Justin put the last three bags on the couch and walked back over to stand by Lance. "Which is why we all wanted Scoop to slow down, he’s been having more problems."

Lance looked up at Justin in surprise. "How did you know?"

Justin gave Lance a wry little smile and rested a hand on Lance’s shoulder. "I didn’t until you just told me. We all thought you’ve been working too hard, though."

Lance looked surprised at that but his expression quickly grew sheepish. "I can’t believe you just did that, Justin. You’re supposed to be the dense one. Don’t tell Chris, he’ll kick my ass."

Justin squeezed Lance’s shoulder gently, chuckling. "Don’t worry about it, Poof. I won’t as long as you behave. Mike and Charlie won’t tell them either, will you?"

Justin looked expectantly over at the two teens as Mike shook his head, but Charlie smiled at Lance and said, "As long as you do like they keep asking you to and slow down."

Lance gave Charlie a dirty look. "You’re as bad as Juppy."

"Thank you," Charlie replied, grinning suddenly.

Lance snorted, a twinkle of amusement in his eyes making it obvious he wasn’t really annoyed as he looked up at Justin. "Back to Josh, now. I don’t think I ever heard the whole story myself. Y’all didn’t want me worrying and kept me in the dark for a long time."

Justin moved over to sit in ‘his’ chair and then looked across the table at Mike and Charlie as he went on. "Well, after Lance collapsed, the doctor who took care of him made noises about child labor laws until Lou let him examine all of us, and then he told the handlers Lou had chivvying us around that there was a problem. He thought they didn’t listen, I guess, because he pulled me, Joe, and Chris aside the next time we came to visit Lance – we left Josh at the hotel to sleep, he’d managed to catch a cold – and had a long talk with us."

Justin trailed off a moment, looking down at his lap, then looked back up at Mike and Charlie as he said quietly, "He told us Lance had nearly died, and that he would if he didn’t start getting more rest and the medicine they prescribed for him. Joe and I both were pretty scared by that, and I think Chris was too, but he felt like he had to take care of us so he didn’t really let it show. Then the doc told Chris that if we didn’t do something, Josh would be the next one in the hospital, if he didn’t die."

Lance’s eyes widened at that. He had known JC had a problem but he hadn’t realized it could be that bad.

"I don’t really remember much after that, but Chris told me later that I fainted," Justin said quietly then, looking down again. "I remember that when I woke up I was in Chris’ hotel room, and I was so scared Josh was going to die that I was crying and more than a little hysterical. Chris tried a dozen different things to snap me out of it before he finally had to slap some sense into me. He asked me then if I was going to just give up on somebody I loved when we could help him, and that made me mad enough to get my attention. That was when he explained that the doc had said Josh was literally starving to death because he has such a high metabolism, and that the way he’d been working so hard and not eating would kill him if we let it continue."

Justin looked back up finally then. "Well, we talked for a long time after that. I found out Joe had already told Chris he would keep an eye on Lance to let Chris know when he needed some time off and be sure he was taking his medicine. Chris told me he was going to make Lou let us slow down, and asked if I thought I could help with Josh since I was the one who was with him all the time. I said I’d try and he promised to help if I thought I needed it, and then I went to Josh’s room to check on him and try to get him out of bed long enough to eat."

Justin looked over at Lance then and said softly, "I had nightmares for a long time after that, and lied to Josh about them. I told him they were about the night you collapsed on stage, but they were really about him."

"How did he know you were having nightmares?" Mike asked, thinking it was probably the easiest to answer of all the questions running through his mind.

Justin looked over at Mike to give him a sudden little smile. "Because we were sleeping together. Just sleeping, and even in pajamas most of the time, but it was nice anyway."

"Why did you two quit sleeping together?” Lance suddenly asked. “I never figured that out. I know you both enjoyed it, and it seemed like you were always curled up by him sharing a bed until one day you just stopped."

Justin blushed. "Well, uhm... See, I started having these ... _dreams_. It was _really_ embarrassing. Josh thought it was funny at the time, but I was sure if he knew who I was dreaming about that would change, and I was afraid I’d say or do something when I was half-asleep one night."

Lance chuckled. "Justin, tell me you’re kidding."

Justin shook his head, smiling wryly even though he was still blushing. "No, I wish I was. Those damn dreams ruined my chances of sleeping with him anymore, and I’d gotten _really_ used to using him as a pillow. That was when Josh had Joe and Chris both give me a safe sex talk – Joe bought me a box of condoms and explained how to use them and left it at that, but Chris took it upon himself to explain all sorts of gross things about girls I’ve spent _years_ trying to forget – and then they started trying to hook me up with someone. It took me almost a month of stammering and ditching girls to think up that whole ‘waiting for marriage’ thing to get them to stop."

Lance grinned. "You didn’t do it, though."

Justin blinked, surprised. "Didn’t do what?"

"Save yourself for marriage," Lance said, still grinning.

Justin suddenly smirked at Lance and lifted his left hand, waggling his third finger to show off the bright silver band. "I’ve got a ring on my finger, Poof, that’s close enough me."

Lance chuckled. "Jup, my point was you didn’t have that your first time, not that you don’t now."

Mike and Charlie both grinned at that as Justin said, "No, but I had his heart and his word. We both know Josh would never lie to me, so I may as well have had the ring."

Lance chuckled again as JC walked out of the bathroom, still shirtless and carrying a small bundle of clothes and a shaving kit as he went into his room. "You’ve got all the bases covered, huh?" Lance asked.

Justin gave Lance a smug grin. "Oh hell yeah, quite a few times now."

Mike, Charlie, and Lance all laughed as Justin took a drink of his Dr. Pepper, watching the door for JC to come back out.

 

 


	43. Chapter 43

 

~~~~43~~~~

 

JC walked out of the room he shared with Justin a few moments later wearing his black stretch jeans and a plain grey t-shirt that clung to every line and curve of his upper body despite the fact it wasn’t really tight. He walked barefoot across the room to sit in the chair by Justin with one foot in the seat and his knee against his chest. "So, what’d I miss?" he asked, smiling first at Justin and then at the others. "Anything interesting?"

Lance returned the smile. "Not really, just talking about how things were back in Europe."

JC made a face. "Hell, that’s how it was. Lou stealin’ us blind and working you half to death, and the rest of us too stupid to see it until you were in the hospital."

Lance blinked, surprised. "Is that all you remember about Europe?"

JC looked thoughtful. "Well, no. Justin was homesick for a while and hated doing his schoolwork, especially the science. Chris and Joe both tried to enjoy the nightlife even though they didn’t really have the energy to do it justice, and you never seemed to sleep because you spent all your time practicing or doing homework."

Justin chuckled softly and asked, "What about you, Josh? You were there, too."

JC turned his head to look at Justin, smiling. "I remember I got to sleep with my best friend a lot, and I was always with him when we weren’t working, and that Joe and Chris drove me batty trying to get me to date for the first few weeks before they gave up. And I remember that your mom took me aside a couple of times when she had to go back stateside and asked that I try to keep you out of trouble, and then after Lance collapsed she started telling me to let her know if any of us needed a rest and Lou didn’t want to give it to us. Why, what should I remember?"

Justin shrugged, smiling. "I was just wondering what had stuck with you."

JC looked thoughtful a moment, then suddenly gave him a wicked little grin. "I remember when a certain guy I know _really_ well got so embarrassed that he quit sleeping with me, if you were hoping I’d forgotten. You never did tell me who you were dreaming about so often."

Justin blushed at that while Lance laughed and teased, "Like you have to ask?"

Charlie and Mike both grinned as JC turned to look at Lance, surprised. "What, he told you?! I asked him a hundred times if I asked him once, and he never did tell me."

Lance smirked. "He might have mentioned something, yeah."

JC looked back over at Justin, his expression slightly hurt. "You never told me."

Justin gave Lance a dirty look, then smiled at JC and said, "Josh, what he failed to tell you is I _just_ told him. I didn’t tell anyone then."

JC looked a little confused. "Why’d you tell him now?"

Justin’s expression shifted into a wry little grin. "Because he asked why I quit sleeping with my best friend when we both had admitted we liked it. I had to explain it was because I was dreaming about him."

"You were dreaming about _Lance_?" JC asked, going wide-eyed in surprise and making the others laugh.

"No," Justin said with a chuckle, "I was dreaming about the same guy I was sleeping with, who just happened to be the one I had been having all sort of inappropriate thoughts about for a few years by then."

Charlie grinned at that, remembering a time when he’d had the same problem and glad his solution had been faster than Justin’s. Charlie had figured out he was in love with Mike a few weeks into their eighth grade year, but it had taken a little more than six months longer for Mike to realize he wanted more than friendship. Of course, once Mike did realize it, he wasted no time seeing what kissing Charlie might be like – Mike’s confident impulsiveness was something Charlie had counted on – and they had been a couple ever since, even though both had dated girls for appearance’s sake.

JC blushed slightly. "Oh."

Justin grinned and leaned over to give JC a quick kiss, then nuzzled JC’s cheek with his nose as he said softly, "You’re so cute when you blush, I always want to see just how far down it goes."

JC blushed even redder, despite an amused smile. "Not as far as you’re hoping."

Lance laughed at that and stood. "It’s after ten. I’m going to go wake the other two up so we can order breakfast, okay?"

JC looked over at Lance, smiling and trying to ignore the lingering blush on his cheeks. "Have fun."

Justin smirked and added, "But don’t do anything I wouldn’t do."

Lance gave them a wicked grin and then started across the room as he replied easily, "I guess that means _everything_ goes then, huh?"

Justin looked surprised at that while JC, Charlie, and Mike laughed.

Lance opened the door to the room he shared with the other two and went in, closing it behind him as he looked at the bed and saw it was empty. He walked to the bathroom door and opened it then, surprised to hear the sink running as well as an odd tapping sound and Chris’ voice saying, "Dammit, Joe, be careful."

"Oh shut up, Critter, I’ve done this once or twice," Joey said, sounding a little annoyed. "And be still!"

Lance’s eyebrows went up then – Joey knew he was strong and was always careful, and he usually didn’t mind the fact Chris couldn’t hold still to save his life when he was excited – and he went further into the bathroom so he could see around the corner between him and the sinks before he stopped, staring. Joey was standing in his underwear near the sink by Chris, who was naked, and Joey had bright red froth all over the top of his head while he rubbed purple stuff into Chris’ hair until it too foamed slightly. Chris was biting his lip and watching Joey in the mirror, nervously tapping his hands on his thighs as he eyed the bright purple dye and hoped it would look okay. Chris liked purple almost as much as he did red or blue, and he thought it’d be cool to have hair that color.

"What the _hell_ are you two _doing_?!" Lance asked after a moment.

Joey looked over at Lance in surprise and then chuckled softly, sure he didn’t have to really explain what they were doing. "It was his idea, babe, I’m just lucky I had some red in my bag. Purple is definitely not my color."

Lance snorted. "Why am I not surprised _he_ _’_ _s_ behind this? Christopher, what were you thinking?"

Chris gave Lance a little grin. "That you would kill me if I dyed your hair purple, so I might as well use it on myself?"

Lance’s eyes went even wider in surprise. "Tell me you did _not_ think about putting that shit in my hair."

Joey stifled a grin, turning to the sink to rinse the purple dye off the plastic gloves he wore. He was sure that admitting he wanted to dye Lance’s hair wasn’t the brightest idea Chris had ever had.

Chris gave Lance a wide-eyed look that was supposed to be innocent and said, "Babe, I know how you feel about your hair."

"That answer does _not_ inspire confidence, Christopher," Lance said, giving Chris a dirty look. "You _do_ know better than to fuck around with my hair, right?"

Chris nodded quickly. "Oh yeah, baby, I wouldn’t, I promise."

Joey did chuckle then. "Especially since none of us would help him."

Lance’s eyes narrowed at that and Chris swatted Joey’s shoulder as he mumbled, "Damn Joe."

Joey just snorted and moved away to turn the shower on, not bothering to reply.

"So you _were_ going to put that shit in my hair?!" Lance asked, obviously more than a little annoyed at Chris. He totally ignored it as Joey took off his underwear and stepped into the shower to rinse the dye out of his hair.

Chris looked sheepish. "It was just an idea, baby. You’d look hot with purple hair."

Lance snorted, not at all mollified. "Is that a hint that I don’t now?"

Chris’s eyes went wide and he shook his head hurriedly as he exclaimed, "No! You’re beautiful just like you are!"

"Then why did you want to change me?" Lance asked, frowning.

"I dunno, I just, I thought it would be fun," Chris said, shrugging and beginning to look a bit dejected. He hadn’t even done it and he was still in trouble, but worse he’d made Lance think he didn’t like the way he looked.

Lance snorted again. "Take my word for it, you will _not_ have any fun if you fuck with my hair. Now get that shit out of your hair before you burn your scalp."

"Yes sir." Chris walked over to the door to the shower, then gave Lance a slightly hopeful look. "Do you wanna join us?"

Lance threw up his hands with a little angry noise and walked out, shaking his head. Chris had never learned the saying ‘quit while you’re ahead’, or the variation Lance’s sister had taught him when he was a boy, ‘quit while you _have_ a head’. Chris had always done best when he was pushing the limits placed on him by other people right to the edge and beyond, and pushing Lance’s few limits was almost instinctive for him.

Lance walked through their room and out into the living room, still annoyed but not really mad, and stopped in surprise again after only a couple of steps into the room when he saw JC was in the middle of the floor with Justin, Charlie, and Mike, and they were all doing the slow yoga stretches JC and Justin usually only did before a concert.

"Why are y’all doing that now?" Lance asked, making them all look up at him.

JC grinned at him as Justin said, "Charlie wants to learn and there’s plenty of room right here. We figured you’d be in there a lot longer."

Lance snorted and walked between JC and Justin towards the kitchen. "I probably would have been if Chris wasn’t being such an idiot."

JC and Justin exchanged a surprised look and then JC stood quickly, offering Justin a hand up and then moving to follow Lance. "What happened?" JC asked.

Charlie and Mike stood too and they all walked over to sit at the table as Lance sat down and said, "Oh, just normal Chrisness. He got bored I guess, and decided to play with some hair dye."

JC sat next to Lance then and Justin sat down by JC’s other side as JC’s eyes went wide and he asked, "He didn’t put it in your shampoo, did he?"

Charlie and Mike sat down in the chairs across from JC and Justin, exchanging a quick look and thinking JC really shouldn’t have said that as Lance’s eyes narrowed. "I didn’t check. Yet. He and Joe are dying their hair."

JC looked relieved at that and Justin grinned, reaching to take JC’s hand as he said, "Good, he listened to us then."

Lance gave JC and Justin both a dirty look and asked incredulously, "You _knew_ he planned to dye my hair purple and didn’t say anything?!"

JC shook his head quickly. "Oh no, Scoop, I would have told you if I thought he’d really do it! We convinced him it was a bad idea, and he decided that he’d just dye _his_ hair instead. I wouldn’t let him do that to you, I know how you hated it when your hair had to be dyed for that movie."

Justin nodded. "Yeah, we would have said something if he still planned to do it, but he told us he wouldn’t."

Lance looked mollified. "Well, if he told you he wouldn’t do it."

Mike spoke up then to ask, "Is it that simple? He said he wouldn’t, so there’s no reason to worry?"

JC, Justin, and Lance all looked surprised. "Of course," JC said, "we never lie to each other, not about anything."

Mike looked at Justin, remembering what Justin had told them while JC was in the shower, and Justin turned red. "Umm... I did, once. It was a long time ago."

JC looked at Justin, shocked. "Why?"

Justin bit his lip for a second and then said, "I didn’t want you to get upset."

JC looked at Justin a long moment, frowning.  "Justin, if Lou—"

Justin shook his head quickly, making a face. "Oh no, it wasn’t anything like that."

"Do you want to tell me what it was?" JC asked after a short silence, wondering why Mike – and Charlie too, he assumed – knew.

Justin looked down at where he held JC’s hand and answered softly, "I—I will, if you want."

"That’s not what I asked you, baby," JC said, turning a bit in his chair to look at Justin. "I asked if you _want_ to tell me."

Justin chewed his lip for a moment, then looked up at JC and asked softly, "Later?"

JC squeezed his hand and gave him a smile. "Whenever you’re ready, baby." Justin smiled back at him, moving to hold JC’s hand in both of his, and then JC looked at Lance and changed the subject, asking, "So are we ordering breakfast soon, or what?"

Lance nodded. "Yeah, we may as well. Those two feather-headed numbskulls can order their own if they want anything. What’d y’all want?"

JC grinned. "A cheese omlete and some bacon for me, with orange juice," he said, and then he looked over at Justin.

"I’m gonna have some of the quiche," Justin said, smiling, "but would you get me some juice too?"

Lance nodded, then looked over at Mike and Charlie. "Have you two eaten?"

Charlie shook his head. "No, we thought we’d wait to see what you guys were doing."

Mike added, "Yeah, and I was hoping for a slice of that quiche. JC was right, Mrs. Fatone makes the best ever."

Lance chuckled. "There’s plenty of quiche, Mike, you’re welcome to some. What would you like for breakfast Charlie?" he asked, looking questioningly at the redhead.

Charlie shrugged. "I’m used to just grabbing a pop tart or something before school, then eating with Mike when we get out for work. I’m not really that hungry."

JC made a ‘nyaah’ noise. "Wrong answer! Can’t say you’re not hungry around here, people will start making you eat."

Lance chuckled as Charlie grinned at JC and said, "But I’m really not hungry."

JC snorted. "That’s never stopped this guy," he nodded towards Justin, "from making me eat half my own weight in food a day, and if he’s not around the others are almost as bad. I swear, I think Justin makes me eat every time _he_ gets hungry!"

Justin laughed. "That’s only because I do. I have to get hungry for both of us since you’re never hungry."

JC gave Justin a funny look. "I get hungry! I was hungry half the night!"

Justin grinned. "And I’m so proud of that I could just kiss you." He paused a second, then his grin turned a little wicked as he said, "Among other things."

JC laughed. "Kissing is all you’re gonna get right now, baby. I want some breakfast."

Justin leaned over to kiss JC, and both of them were obviously using tongue until Justin finally pulled away with a smirk. "After breakfast, I want some dessert."

JC grinned. "Maybe. Depends on how quickly you can get the stuff you scattered all over our room picked up."

Justin grinned at JC as Lance chuckled and asked, "Justin, is there ever a time when you don’t want Josh?"

Justin looked at Lance, surprised. "Sure there is, when Josh is slee—" Justin broke off abruptly mid-word, then said, "Okay, so maybe when he’s— No, wait, I want him then, too. Umm..." He looked thoughtful for a moment, then brightened and said, "Oh, I know! When _I_ _’_ _m_ asleep!"

JC laughed. "Wrong answer, baby. Otherwise I wouldn’t have froze my ass off the last few months we were in Europe."

Lance, Charlie, and Mike laughed while Justin blushed at that.

Justin grinned after a moment, trying to ignore the way his face was flaming as he looked at Lance and said, "Okay, so I always want him. He’s a really sexy guy."

JC snorted and was about to say something when Lance said, "You didn’t have to tell _me_ he’s sexy, I _have_ met him, y’know."

JC blushed at that, smiling as he looked down at where Justin still held his hand, and Justin winked at Lance, grinning.

Lance grinned back at Justin, and then he looked over at Charlie. "JC’s right though, you’ve gotta eat around here. We work too hard for you to go without. What would you like?"

Charlie shrugged, smiling wryly. "I dunno. Quiche will work I guess, if there’s enough."

Lance nodded, smiling. "There is, we didn’t eat all of the one we started yesterday, and there’s another in there." He stood then and said, "We still have a few Dr. Pepper left, and I’m going to have them send up coffee and a pitcher of orange juice. Would you like anything else? Milk or tea or something?"

Charlie shook his head. "Coffee’s fine."

Mike grinned. "And I’m an orange juice guy."

Lance chuckled. "You’ll fit right in when we get home to Orlando then, they even serve it in the fast food joints. I’ll be back in a few minutes." Lance turned and headed for his room to use the phone but paused after only a few steps and turned back to look at JC and Justin. "You guys mind if I use yours? I don’t wanna have to try and order while Chris is playing or trying to apologize." Lance gave them a wry grin.

JC chuckled. "Go ahead, Scoop, you know we don’t mind you in our room.”

Lance grinned and turned away again, going into their room.

Mike was looking at JC and Justin, grinning slightly, and after a moment JC grinned and asked, "What, are we turning green or something?"

Mike laughed. "No, I was just wondering something."

JC looked expectantly at him and Justin said, "We can’t read your mind man, ask."

"Okay, if you insist." Mike grinned and asked, "JC, how is it you never had any, uh, _embarrassing_ dreams around Justin? He said you two slept together for a long time, and you’re older..."

Mike trailed off, grinning at them, and Charlie turned red and covered his face with his hand. "I do not know _how_ you can ask him something like that!"

JC chuckled. "It’s okay, I don’t mind."

Justin grinned at JC and said, "Then answer the question, babe. I’m curious too."

Joey and Chris walked out of their room then and started towards the table, but the four sitting there didn’t notice.

Mike and Charlie were busy watching while JC looked at Justin, blushing slightly, and said, "Well, I knew I was going to be with you at night, and I didn’t want anything embarrassing to, uh, come up." Justin smirked at that, and JC blushed even redder as he realized how that sounded and went on quickly. "So I took care of it when you weren’t around."

Justin’s eyes widened in surprise. "I never thought of trying that!"

Mike and JC both laughed at that, then the four at the table all looked up in surprise when Joey and Chris started laughing too. Joey’s hair was bright red again over the top of his head like it had been a dozen times before, while Chris’ hair was just a little darker than normal and had a really subtle purple sheen to it. Neither had bothered to gel their hair or anything after they dried it, and Joey’s was all floppy and even a little wavy while Chris’ stood up in some places and fell in others, making it look like he’d just come out of a brisk wind.

"Curly, I always knew you were a little dense, but damn!" Chris said after laughing a moment, grinning like a fool.

Justin stuck his tongue out at Chris. "I don’t do that."

Chris just snorted in disbelief as JC grinned at Justin and said, "I find that hard to believe too, baby. _Every_ guy does it."

Justin looked at JC. "Well, I don’t! Mom made Dad have a talk with me when I turned twelve, and he told me all kinds of stuff about how it was wrong to do that and bad for you and shit. I was almost seventeen before I even tried –" Justin broke off, his face flaming, and didn’t finish.

Joey laughed. "Tell me you’re kidding, Jup."

Justin shook his head, still blushing. "Naw man, I’m serious. He said it was worse than being a ‘fag’, and he hates gay people. Hates me too, now, but back then I hadn’t met Josh yet." Justin didn’t even think about the fact that made it sound almost as though just meeting JC had made him gay or something, that was just how he remembered it. Until he met JC, he’d never looked twice at a guy. After he met JC, he never looked twice at anyone else.

JC shook his head, giving Justin a wry grin. "Baby, I don’t know how in the world you grew up with the four of us and didn’t find out about some things."

Justin shrugged and Chris flopped down in the seat at the end of the table as he said, "The Infant never wanted to find out that stuff, Josh, or he would have wanted to play games like ‘I Never’ with us."

Justin snorted and gave Chris a dirty look. "Oh yeah, _that_ would have been loads of fun. You guys would have all been totally smashed while I was still holding my first shot and wondering if stuff I’d done in a chat room counted!"

Mike started laughing at that as Chris, Joey, and JC all grinned at Justin, then after a minute JC grinned wickedly and said, "We could play now. We don’t have to drink, just nod or something."

"Oh!" Chris said, grinning and sitting up a bit straighter, "that sounds like fun!"

Justin made a face, then looked across the table at Charlie and Mike. "They’re gonna have fun making fun of us, you know that, right?"

Lance walked out of JC and Justin’s room then and stopped to see what the guys were talking about, looking at Chris and thinking his hair actually looked good. It reminded Lance of how Chris had looked in a Rolling Stone photo, one when he’d had colored gel in his hair and was doing that wicked smirk that looked so good on him. Lance suddenly recalled the purple silk shirt Chris had worn to the pre-Grammy party last year and wondered then what happened to it, thinking it would look really good with Chris’ new jeans and that purple tint to his hair.

Mike grinned at Justin. "What makes you think that they’ll have a reason to make fun of us? Charlie’s shy, yeah, but that’s only when we’re not alone."

Charlie turned red and swatted at Mike’s shoulder, and then looked at the others. "I’m not playing."

Chris laughed. "You don’t have to, Mike can play for both of you."

Mike grinned and nodded while Charlie turned even redder.

Lance walked over to sit down, giving Chris a wary look before he looked at JC. "What is it he wants to play?"

JC grinned. "‘I Never’." Lance’s eyes widened and then JC went on, "And actually, it was my idea."

Lance stared at JC, then looked past him to Justin. "Who is this man and what did you do with our Joshua?!"

JC smirked. "Y’know, Justin asked me the very same thing right after we got to the hotel the other night..."

Chris and Joey both laughed at that while Mike grinned and Charlie debated a strategic retreat before they had a chance to start playing the game. He just knew it was going to get ‘personal’, and fast.

Justin snorted and looked at Lance. "The explanation I got was something similar to, ‘I finally don’t have to ignore the things about you that make me want to get freaky all over you’."

JC’s eyes widened and he said indignantly, "I did _not_ say that!"

Justin’s eyebrows went up and he smirked at JC. "Oh yeah? What _did_ you say then?"

JC thought a moment, remembering, and then suddenly he laughed. "Okay, so maybe that’s close enough."

Lance chuckled, shaking his head. "Well, if you’re gonna play you’ll have to get it over with before breakfast. It’ll be up in fifteen minutes."

Chris grinned at him. "Will you play too, babe?"

Lance gave Chris a measuring look, then shrugged. "Sure, why not. What’re we supposed to do if we’ve done something?"

Chris laughed. "Just raise your hand or something. I never topped a guy who’s not in this room."

Charlie turned bright red and looked down at the table as Chris raised his hand, followed by JC and then Lance while Chris looked expectantly at Joey, who just looked at him, smiling slightly. "Joe?" Chris asked, his eyes going a bit wide, "You’ve never?!"

Joey laughed. "Critter, why would I want to risk everything we have just to do some guy? Girls aren’t nearly as much fun in bed as you are, but at least the record company didn’t care if I got caught."

"What about before that, Joe?" Chris asked, still more than a little amazed.

Joey chuckled. "Nope. You were it until Scoop, and the two of you are plenty to keep me busy from now on."

Chris still looked surprised as Lance – who had known that little tidbit of information – grinned and said, "Okay, my turn. Let’s finish the other half of the question. I’ve never bottomed for anyone not in this room."

Lance hadn’t even bothered to put his hand down, and JC snorted and raised his hand again immediately, followed by Chris.

"My turn," JC said. "Those were both lame, we already pretty much knew the answers. I’ve never had sex in a public restroom." JC raised his hand as he looked at Joey and Chris and said, "And yes, blowjobs do count."

Lance chuckled and raised his hand again as Chris raised his, then Chris laughed and raised the other one too as Joey raised his hand, but everyone was shocked when Mike asked, "Does the bathroom of an empty gym count as public?"

Charlie covered his face with his hand, his ears even bright red as he mumbled, "Oh God."

Justin grinned at Mike as Chris laughed and said, "Close enough."

Everyone looked at Justin, then, and he just looked right back at them for a moment before he suddenly said, "Oh! My turn. Umm... I’ve never had sex three times in one night."

Justin watched as the others all raised their hands, but Justin kept his hand down until Chris said, "Juppy, dumbass, raise your hand."

Justin gave them his best innocent look. "Why? I’ve never had sex three times in one night!"

JC laughed. "Baby, you can’t lie worth a damn, especially since I know better. I was _there_."

Justin snorted. "I have not. Four times, and even five, but never just three!" JC turned red as Chris, Lance, and Joey all laughed, and Justin grinned across the table at Mike and said, "Your turn."

Mike’s eyes went wide. "Umm, why don’t I just pass?"

Charlie pulled his hand off his face and looked at Mike. "Too late, big mouth, you already said you wanted to play."

Mike looked at Charlie a minute, then gave the redhead a challenging look and said, "Okay Char. I never deep throated anyone."

Charlie went even redder if that was possible but he raised his hand, followed with a smirk by Mike and then the others while Justin looked a bit unhappy and kept his hand down.

JC grinned when he saw the look on Justin’s face and nudged him with his elbow. "You’re getting the hang of it baby, you just need a little more practice. It’s not as easy as it looks."

Lance and Chris both laughed at that, looking at JC in surprise while Justin’s face flamed.

"My turn," Joey said, smiling slightly. "I’ve never had a wet dream about JC."

JC turned bright red at that and covered his eyes with both hands because he really didn’t want to know the answer to that. Justin raised his hand with a little grin, then Chris snorted and raised his, looking at Lance expectantly and completely missing it when Mike and then Charlie both raised their hands, blushing furiously.

Lance grinned at Chris and asked, "And why are you looking at me?"

"Because we all know you think he’s hot," Chris replied, grinning.

Lance smirked. "Well, I’m not alone in that sweetheart, Josh is gorgeous, but evidently Joe and I are the only ones who don’t dream about him."

Chris looked over at Charlie and Mike then, wide-eyed, and let his raised hand fall. "Whoa."

Joey chuckled softly. "Josh, forget you heard that."

JC uncovered his eyes, still scarlet, and said feelingly, "I’m gonna try, you can bet on that."

"Your turn again, Critter," Joey said, poking Chris’ shoulder.

"Okay," Chris said, still a bit wide-eyed as he looked over at Mike and Charlie a moment before he looked at JC and Justin, then suddenly grinned and said, "I’ve never had a wet dream about Justin."

Joey laughed, shaking his head and watching as only JC’s hand went up, then Justin made a face and said, "I’m still the luckiest guy in the room. Y’all all want Josh, but _he_ wants me."

JC chuckled and reached to take Justin’s hand, then looked expectantly at Lance, who looked thoughtful a moment and then said, "I’ve never told anyone who isn’t in this room that I was in love with them and meant it."

All of them looked around, smiles slowly appearing as nobody raised their hand.

"I like that one," Justin said, grinning.

JC nodded, smiling as Lance. "Yeah, that was a good one, Scoop."

Lance grinned at him. "Thanks. Your turn."

"Hmm," JC said, thinking a moment, then smirked. "I never went to a bar in drag." JC raised his free hand, making Lance laugh until Chris tapped him on the shoulder, making Lance turn to see Chris and Joey had raised their hands too.

"You have got to be kidding me," Lance said, his green eyes going huge. "You two like to dress _in drag_?!"

Justin started laughing then, thinking they had to play this a lot more often if only because Lance sounded completely scandalized by that, but Chris just snorted. "C didn’t ask if we _liked_ it, just if we’d _done_ it. Y’see, me and Joe went to this party one time at Oz..."

Joey chuckled and added, "And we didn’t shave anything but our faces so it was a pretty pitiful attempt at drag, but we did both have on dresses, wigs, and makeup. It was a great party though, the entertainment was hilarious." Joey looked over at JC, grinning slightly, and asked, "What’s your excuse, Josh?"

"I wanted to see Blu Cantrell perform one night when she was doing an exclusive little club in LA, and Tony got tickets but I didn’t think I should be seen with him in public," JC replied with a shrug, smiling. "I asked Jake if he thought I should risk it and he didn’t think I should, so he borrowed some stuff from his boyfriend for me so I could go in drag." He smirked suddenly then and added, "I did pretty good too, I had a bunch of straight guys hit on me, even a few I knew."

 

 


	44. Chapter 44

 

~~~~44~~~~

 

Lance looked at JC for a long moment more while the others laughed, then Lance finally asked, "Josh, sweetheart, do you _like_ dressing up like a woman?"

JC gave Lance his very best innocent look. "Who, me?!"

Lance snorted. "Yes you! A simple yes or no answer will do nicely, thank you."

JC laughed. "Sure, it’s fun. You guys never did ask what I do besides a flamer and a surfer."

JC grinned at Lance a moment before Lance finally asked, "Well?"

"Yes, well," JC said smugly, purposefully obtuse. "I’ve never had another gay guy hit on me when I was in drag, but a whole bunch of straight guys have. Jake told me once that it was because guys took one look at whatever rack and ass I had borrowed from Gary and never noticed I had a guy’s hands."

Mike chuckled at that while Chris, Joey, and Charlie all grinned.

Justin laughed. "You gotta do that sometime when we’re around Brit and Wade, baby. I wanna see if they’ll recognize you."

JC shrugged, grinning. "Sure baby, whatever you want. I can tell you right now that Danny won’t, though. I saw him in a club one time just after he left Madonna, and asked if the seat next to him at the bar was taken. He said ‘Lady, I’m into dicks, not chicks’."

Joey and Lance both chuckled at that while Chris laughed in delight and said, "I have _got_ to meet this Danny guy, he sounds like fun."

Justin grinned at Chris, nodding. "He is, I promise. I haven’t hung around him a lot – he doesn’t like to encourage Brit too much – but he’s a really cool guy."

"Baby, I’ve been wondering something. Brit has known you love me for years, right?" JC asked, and when Justin immediately nodded he went on, "Wade made some comments last night when I was talking to Brit that made me wonder how long he’s known. Did she tell him?"

Justin nodded. "Yeah, but not until Friday night. He’s known Brit and I aren’t really together for a long time, but she hadn’t told him exactly why until he answered her phone when I called her. He listened to her talk to us and asked her some questions, and after I talked to her the next day she explained it all to him."

"Did she tell him about us, too?" Joey asked.

Justin shook his head. "No, I didn’t even tell _Brit_ about you guys, it wasn’t mine to tell."

Joey looked at Lance. "So we either got caught at the compound when he was there, or we’re a lot more obvious than I thought."

Lance was thoughtful a moment, then said, "I think we got probably got caught, we weren’t always as careful as we could have been."

Mike spoke up then. "For what it’s worth, I wouldn’t have guessed you two were together after seeing you at the restaurant, you just seemed like friends."

Charlie nodded and Lance smiled at then both. "Thanks, that’s good to know. How about at the mall yesterday?"

"There was only once you might have slipped up," Mike replied, "and then it wasn’t anything that couldn’t be friendship. I was amazed at how well you were all able to go to ‘just friends’ as soon as we left the room, especially you two." He looked over at JC and Justin as he said that, smiling. "You’re all over each other all the time here, but at the mall I’d have been just as likely to think either of you was with Chris going by how you acted."

JC grinned as Justin looked smugly at the other guys and said, "See, I told you we could do it."

Lance snorted, stifling a grin as he looked at Mike. "When did I mess up? We need to know things like that when you notice them."

Charlie answered quickly. "It wasn’t anything major, boss. I would have said something right then if it was. The only thing I saw was while we were in Borders and the others were all goofing around and looking at the childrens DVDs. You and Joey just stood together talking and watched them, but you looked..." He paused, then shrugged and said, "Well, it’s kind of hard to explain."

Mike chuckled. "Charlie’s trying to say you didn’t look like you were just watching your friends."

Charlie nodded, giving Mike a quick smile for translating for him before he looked back at Lance and added, "You didn’t necessarily look like you and Joey are together, but you both looked like you were watching people you love."

Lance looked a little worried at that, but Joey just smiled and said, "Thanks guys. Tell us when you notice things like that, okay? We have to really watch it in public, even the little stuff."

Mike nodded. "We will. I doubt anyone noticed, there weren’t many people in the store and it wasn’t terribly obvious. Even if someone had, all your fans know you five are really close so any who saw it would probably have ignored it."

"Still," Lance said, frowning slightly and looking down at the table as he continued absently, "I thought it’d be Justin we had to worry about."

Justin snorted, giving Lance a bit of a dirty look. "Josh is the world to me but that doesn’t mean I’ll forget to be careful in public, if for no other reason than the fact I promised I would."

JC reached over to put his hand on Justin’s knee as he said softly, "Baby, he didn’t mean it like that."

Lance looked up at them in surprise and said the first thing that came to mind. "Justin, I knew you’d try, I just didn’t think you’d be able to do it."

Justin made a soft ‘huh’ noise, annoyed that Lance had so little confidence in him. "I promised you I _would_ , not that I would _try_!"

JC squeezed Justin’s knee then, giving him a reassuring smile. "And you did just like you said you would," he said, trying to distract Justin from Lance.

Lance nodded, finally realizing Justin felt like Lance didn’t think he could count on his word and wanting to smooth things over. "Yeah, you did, Justin. You did great."

Justin knew JC hated it when they argued so he dropped it, reaching to take the hand JC had rested on his knee.

JC looked at Lance after a moment and changed the subject slightly. "You guys acted just like you always do, I don’t think we really have anything to worry about."

"I hope you’re right," Lance said, and was surprised when Chris spoke up.

"The more I think about it, the less worried I am about us getting caught," Chris said, looking at Lance. "We don’t need Jive, and we don’t need the fans who are close-minded enough not to listen to us just because the five of us are in love."

Charlie’s eyebrows went up at the way Chris worded that but Mike just smiled, thinking he’d been right all along.

Lance stared at Chris, wide-eyed, and then asked, "You’re kidding, right?"

Chris smiled slightly. "Well, in a word, no. Sure, we’d go through some hell over it, but the world wouldn’t end. We don’t need to go on ‘ _Rosie_ ’ and tell the whole world tomorrow, but if somebody starts a rumor it won’t be the first one we’ve heard. I’m not saying we shouldn’t be careful in public – I think we should, within reason – but I don’t think we have to worry about something so simple as you and Joe watching the rest of us play around in a record store either." Chris paused a second, then got a wicked twinkle in his eyes and said, "Now, you and Joe watching the rest of us _have sex_ in a record store, _that_ might cause some problems."

Lance laughed. "Yeah, like all of us being _arrested_!"

Chris smirked. "You and Joe wouldn’t get arrested just for watching."

Lance grinned. "Yeah, but there’s no way in hell I’d watch you play with Justin and Josh without joining in, and I’d bet Joe feels the same."

Joey laughed at that just as there was a knock on the door, and Lance stood to go answer it as Justin reluctantly let go of JC’s hand. JC gave Justin a quick smile and shifted slightly in his seat so that he wasn’t so obviously leaning towards him anymore, even though their chairs were still closer together than the other guys’. Justin stood then and went to get out the quiche and heat it, figuring he was closest and that gave him an excuse to move his chair over just a bit so it wouldn’t be quite so obvious he’d been trying to stay as close to JC as possible.

Lance unlocked the door and opened it to see Joanna and a hotel employee with their breakfast waiting at the door. "C’mon in, you can put it anywhere," Lance said with a smile, opening the door wide and then walking back inside. "What can we do for you, Joanna?"

Joanna walked in, followed by the young man with the room service cart. "I just wanted to talk to you a minute before you go, and I wasn’t sure when you were leaving," Joanna answered, smiling and moving out of the way so the bellhop could roll the cart into the room.

Lance turned to the bellhop with a smile as soon as the cart was well into the room. "Thank you, we’ll take it from here."

"You’re very welcome sir," the bellhop replied with a smile, "just call when you’re ready for someone to clear it away."

"We will, thank you," Lance replied.

The young man smiled again and gave a little nod of his head and then left, closing the door behind him as Justin put the quiche in the microwave.

Lance started unloading the tray, setting JC’s breakfast out first and then getting his own and a plate of donuts as he said, "Josh? Would you get us some glasses for the orange juice?"

"Sure, Scoop," JC said and jumped up to go get them out of the cabinet above the microwave.

Lance smiled at Joanna as he moved one of the two pots of coffee to the table, setting it where Charlie could reach it. "Now, what did you need?" Lance had his back to JC and Justin, so he didn’t see the way JC was casually resting his left hand on the small of Justin’s back as he leaned up to get the glasses down

Joanna had been looking in surprise at Charlie and Mike – the guys had never invited _her_ to breakfast in their hotel room! – but she quickly looked up at Lance. "I wanted to find out if there was anything you needed me to do while you guys are out on Pawley’s, and to tell you Geofrey called to say you can turn your phone back on because he’d convinced Meredith not to bother you any more until you call them. He said something about you threatening to change your cell number and that it wasn’t necessary."

Lance chuckled. "Yes, well, they’re out of luck if they think I’ll fall for that. Anyone I want to talk to knows how to get me."

JC spoke up suddenly. "Speaking of calling, were you aware Melinda is giving out my cell number without asking first?" He looked over his shoulder and paused as he reached for another glass, the hand resting on Justin’s back rather obvious when Joanna looked at them, as was the ring he wore.

"No, I wasn’t," Joanna said, looking a bit annoyed even as she wondered at JC and Justin standing so close when Justin had plenty of room to move out of JC’s way. "When did she do it?" Joanna wondered why JC was wearing the ring too as soon as she noticed it. JC almost never wore jewelry other than his necklace unless they were ‘working’, and even then she’d never seen a ring on that particular finger.

"Yesterday," JC answered, gathering up several glasses to carry them to the table and then looking at Justin. "Get the others, would you Jup?"

Justin nodded and carried the other three glasses over, and when he set them down Joanna eyebrows went up as she saw a ring on his left hand identical to the one on JC’s. Justin went back to the microwave to watch the quiche as JC started pouring the orange juice into glasses, and Joanna looked back at JC just as he spoke.

"She gave my number to Tony Lucca," JC went on, "which isn’t as bad as it could be, but still, I hadn’t given it to him for a reason. I can’t speak for the other guys, but I know I specifically asked you girls not to give my number to _anyone_ without asking me first." JC gave Joanna a firm look as he passed Mike a glass of juice, not even noticing the funny way she was looking at him.

"I know you have, JC," Joanna said as she watched JC pour glasses of juice for himself, Justin, Joey, Lance, and Chris. "I’m sorry, if she had asked me I would have made sure she didn’t give out your number, but I didn’t even know she’d spoken to him. Johnny gave the number for the hotel room we’re using as an office this week to the forwarding service we use, and Melinda’s been answering the phones because I thought she could handle that and it gave her something to do." Joanna sighed, and then added, "I’ll find something else to keep her busy."

Chris made a face at that, unable to see Joanna without twisting around so he hadn’t seen the looks she was giving JC. Mike had seen her looking at JC and Justin’s hands though, and was wondering if she was going to ask about the rings.

Lance spoke again then, moving several plates, some silverware and the coffee cups to the table as he said, "We have very little we ask for in the way of privacy besides our hotel rooms and our cell phones, and she should know by now not to give them out unless we tell her to. She hassled Chris the other morning because we wanted her to give Mike our room number so he could call us, and then she gave out JC’s cell without even asking him. We like Melinda, but we like for our people to actually _listen_ to us and do their jobs too, and she seems not to do either one very often."

Joanna nodded and moved over behind Mike and Charlie so she could see the guys’ faces and watch JC as he sat down. "I know, I’ve tried to get her to work on the website like she is supposed to, and to answer the fan emails, but she just doesn’t. I’ve been doing email most of the last two days, some of it _months_ old, and sorting the regular mail and doing all the other things I do for you guys besides. I’d planned on using your time off to catch up on all the little things I had to let slide to keep up while we were on tour, but when I saw how long she’d let email go I thought that needed done first." Joanna looked away from JC then to watch as Justin took the quiche out of the microwave and carried it to the table to begin dishing out slices for himself, Charlie, Mike and Joey.

"You won’t have to worry about the email anymore in a week or two," Lance said as he poured himself a cup of coffee, then he sat down. "Once we get back on the road and get everything set up, Mike here has agreed to start doing the website and at least some of the fan emails for us, and he and Charlie are going to be helping us with a lot of the things you’ve had to do, like running errands for us and helping out before concerts."

Lance paused to take a sip of his coffee, and then he went on. "We know you’ve got too much on your plate, Jo, and we’re trying to help, but I think keeping Melinda around is just making more work for everyone, including you. When we ask you to do something, even something we never do like giving our room number to someone, you do it because you give us credit for having the brains to know who we can trust and who we can’t. Melinda seems to think she needs to ask us a dozen questions and put in her two cents worth every time we talk to her, even if it’s just about something as simple as passing on a phone message, and it’s gotten annoying."

Joanna nodded again, watching as Justin sat back down by JC and began to eat, then she looked at Lance. "I’ll talk to personnel about getting her transferred to one of the offices or even back to Jive headquarters, if that’s okay?"

Lance nodded as the others began eating, finally wondering why she had been watching JC and Justin so closely as he put his coffee cup down. "That’s better than okay," Lance said with a smile, "it saves me the time I planned to spend on doing that this afternoon. You know we hate to fire anyone or even transfer them out, but Melinda has had a hundred chances and never made much of an attempt at doing her job."

Joanna gave Lance a wry little grin. "You five are too sweet for your own good sometimes. When I talk to Jive do you want me to ask them to assign us some more help, or are we going to see how things work out with just me, Michelle, Mike and Charlie?"

Lance looked at Chris and Joey before he looked over at JC and Justin, then surprised Joanna by looking questioningly at Mike and Charlie too to include them as he asked, "What do you guys think?" He picked his cup back up and took another sip of his coffee, waiting to see what the others would say.

Chris looked up from blowing on his own coffee. "I think Jive can keep their idiots and we’ll find our own folks." Chris gave Joanna a wry grin as he added, "We all know you’re the exception to the rule."

Joanna chuckled. "Seems that way, doesn’t it? Jive _does_ have good personnel, we just never get any of them. They usually send us the folks BSB couldn’t work with."

JC made a face. "The Boys aren’t that bad, I still don’t see why folks are always complaining about them. We’ve never had a problem with anyone but Kev, and even he got over whatever knot he had his undies in."

"Oh, I know," Joanna said with a grin, "I like them myself. It’s just that a lot of people in the business are either in it for the things they think you guys will do for them – or _to_ them – or else they don’t want to work with anyone who’s in the closet ‘cause they’re afraid they’ll bomb when they come out." Lance and Chris both looked at her like she was insane and she laughed. "Didn’t y’all know? _Everyone_ knows the Boys are all either gay or bi, where have you been?"

"I didn’t think anyone knew," Chris said, surprised.

Joanna laughed again. "Well, just about everyone does, from the bus drivers to the brass. AJ and Howie are pretty discreet, and Kevin’s always careful, but Brian and Nick have never tried very hard to hide it from anyone." She snorted. "Like they could, those two are totally in love."

"And Jive doesn’t care?" JC asked.

Joanna looked at JC for a moment before she replied. "Well, yeah, they do, but they can’t do a lot about it. Brian and Nick aren’t gonna give each other up just to keep their record deal. They’d just tell Jive to shove it and go somewhere else, or even start singing county fairs and birthday parties." She chuckled. "Jive is always trying some new stupidity to push them apart without quite actually telling them to break up, but they don’t have much to worry about, really. Any of them could march in a Pride parade tomorrow and Jive would just cry and then tell the world it was somebody else, or maybe a publicity stunt." She giggled.

Lance laughed. "Somehow I think Jive would do a little more than that. Johnny gives us hell just for touching each other in public. I can do this," he put his hand on JC’s shoulder, "on TRL and Johnny will have an hour-long screaming fit."

Joanna snorted. "That’s stupid, anyone can see it’s not like that between you two. If he and Justin were holding hands on TRL I can see him fussing a bit, but just not because you touched JC’s shoulder."

JC’s eyes went wide. "What?!"

Justin’s eyebrows went up and he looked at Joanna like she was crazy while his mind worked overtime, trying to figure out how to fix whatever they’d done to make her think he and JC were together.

Joanna looked at JC, smiling. "JC, rumors have flown about you two for years. I’m just surprised it took you this long to give them some basis in fact."

Lance gave Joanna an unreadable look. "What makes you think there is?"

Joanna’s eyebrows went up then. "It’s pretty obvious, boss, at least to me. The rings, the way JC leaned up against Justin to get the glasses..." Joanna looked JC in the eye and asked, "Are you going to tell me you’re not with Justin?"

JC, still wide-eyed, just said, "Shit."

Lance face-palmed, stifling a groan and wishing JC had learned to lie convincingly at some point in his life.

Joanna laughed. "That’s what I thought."

Justin looked at her, frowning. "So, what are you going to do?"

Joanna looked surprised. "Do?" Chris snorted then, and Joanna frowned when it dawned on her a moment later what Justin meant. "You think I’d say something that would make trouble for you guys?"

They all just looked at her a long moment before Lance said, "Joanna, you work for Jive."

Joanna let out a little laugh. "Yes, well, you’ve never tried to hire me away from them, now have you?"

Lance’s eyebrows went up. "Would you leave Jive for us?"

"In a heartbeat," Joanna replied, smiling slightly. "I like working for you, not for Jive. I’ve turned down five promotions and several offers from other groups who wanted to hire me to stay with y’all. I like working for the five sweetest men in the music business, and besides, you guys _need_ me."

Chris chuckled and nodded while Lance, who still looked surprised, said, "We do, Joanna, I won’t deny that. You printed all the paperwork for Mike and Charlie, you’re welcome to do another set for yourself if you seriously want to work for us instead of Jive."

Joanna grinned. "Well, umm, now that you _mention_ it, I sort of already did. I was going to ask if you guys were still hiring."

Lance laughed. "Bring them up here before we go and I’ll sign them. We’d love to have you on our side, you’ve made my job a lot easier over the last couple years."

Joey nodded. "Which we appreciate more than you know."

Joanna smiled at Joey. "I know _you_ do, Joey." She trailed off, then asked hesitantly, "Umm, can I ask you guys a few questions?"

Lance chuckled. "Ask Jo, we won’t get mad."

"They might not answer though," Mike piped up, grinning.

Joanna looked at Mike and Charlie, then at Lance. "Why are Mike and Charlie in here with you guys? You never hang out with people who work for you."

Lance grinned. "Because they don’t just work for us, Jo, they’re friends. Mike and Charlie have a surprisingly good grasp on what it’s like to be us, and they’re great company. The five of us may be happiest together, but we like having friends to talk to, too."

"Okay, but you guys just met these two, so why don’t they seem surprised that JC and Justin are together?" Joanna asked, looking confused.

Lance looked at Charlie and Mike for them to answer that one.

After a quick glance to see Charlie was looking at him, Mike shrugged and looked at Joanna as he said, "I’ve been sure JC and Justin are perfect for each other for years. I’m more surprised that anyone has thought they _weren_ _’_ _t_ together."

"I don’t think they would have told us or even hired us if we hadn’t sort of caught them," Charlie added, feeling like Joanna deserved to know that much at least and that it might make her feel a bit better.

"No, after seeing you dance we would have hired you anyway, have no doubt," Lance said, smiling at Charlie. "JC’s dragged in a hundred strays over the years because he thought they had talent, and you’re by far the most talented of the lot."

JC nodded, grinning across the table at Charlie and Mike. "Yeah, you guys are great! I want y’all to help me teach Justin how to shag."

Joanna’s eyes went wide. " _Please_ tell me you’re talking about dancing."

JC and Justin both looked at her, lost, but Chris laughed while Lance grinned and said, "Yeah, Jo, they mean the dance."

Joanna gave Lance a sheepish little grin as JC asked, "What other kind of shag is there?"

Chris laughed as Lance smirked at JC and said, "Josh, sweetheart, in the UK ‘shagging’ is having sex."

Joanna was a bit surprised to hear Lance call JC ‘Josh’, but hearing the ‘sweetheart’ bit tacked on made her eyebrows disappear under the hair on her forehead. ‘ _Didn_ _’_ _t they just say that JC was with Justin?!_ _’_

JC’s eyes widened slightly at that while Justin blurted, "No wonder Wade thought it was so funny I wanted to learn to shag!"

Joey and Chris both started laughing again as Mike snickered.

Lance gave Justin a wicked grin. "Well, Jup, next time you can tell Wade that Josh already showed you how."

JC suddenly smirked at Justin and added, "And you picked it up even faster than you do dancing."

Justin looked more than a little smug at that. "Well hey, I do have the best teacher ever."

Lance laughed, and JC was unable to keep from grinning even as he blushed.

Joanna was just staring at them all like they’d turned green or something, and Charlie looked over at her with a little grin as he asked, "You okay over there, Joanna?" Charlie had managed to not even blush through that, and was pretty proud of himself, thinking he’d get over blushing every five minutes yet. He’d have to around these guys, Mike included.

Joanna looked at Charlie, surprised. "Aren’t you surprised to hear them talking like that?!"

Mike laughed. "No, they’re actually being good ‘cause there’s a lady in the room."

Joanna’s eyes widened even further at that. "I might have expected as much from Joey and Chris, maybe even Justin, but I never would have thought Lance or JC would be the type."

Chris laughed. "Jo, there’s a lot you’ll have to learn now that you’re working for us. This is just part of it," Chris said, then stood quickly and turned to lean over Lance and kiss him.

Lance at first didn’t respond mostly out of surprise, then gave in and slid a hand around behind Chris’ neck, holding Chris’ head still as Lance tipped his own head sideways a bit to deepen the kiss.

Joanna watched them kiss until Lance released Chris and the older man sat back down, and her eyes were still huge as she finally said, "Damn, that was _so_ hot."

Lance’s face flushed bright red immediately as Chris smirked at Joanna and said, "If you think _that_ was hot, you ought to see him when Joe—"

Lance swatted Chris on the shoulder as he interrupted him. "Christopher, don’t finish that."

Chris gave Lance a patently false innocent look. "Why, baby? What’d I do?"

Lance was completely unimpressed. "That look doesn’t work on me, sweetheart, and you know exactly what you were going to say."

Chris grinned. "Are you sure it doesn’t work? You called me ‘sweetheart’ instead of ‘Christopher’, so I must have done something right." Lance stuck his tongue out at Chris, who grinned and said, "Mike’s got the right idea, don’t show me that thing unless I get to play with it."

Joanna couldn’t help but laugh at that, even though she was still wide-eyed. The way that Chris was talking Lance was with him _and_ Joey, and Lance had called JC sweetheart, so she suddenly found herself wondering if they were _all_ together.

Lance snorted and then stood up as he grinned and stuck his tongue out at Chris again, obviously daring him as he backed away. Chris laughed and stood to go after him, but Joey reached over and grabbed Chris’ waistband, pulling him over into his lap.

Chris pouted at Joey, trying ineffectually to get loose as he whined, "Joe-bear, lemme go, he wants to _play_."

Joey grinned at Chris and held on. "Then he shouldn’t have run," then stuck his tongue out at Chris, who laughed and kissed him.

 

 


	45. Chapter 45

 

~~~~45~~~~

 

Joanna stared at them a moment, watching as Lance walked over behind Joey to rest his hands on Joey’s shoulders and watch him and Chris kiss. Chris finally pulled away after a minute or two and then Lance immediately leaned down with a wicked little grin to kiss Joey while Chris watched them, obviously enjoying it.

Joanna looked at JC after a few minutes. "So all five of you are together?"

JC looked surprised. "What makes you think that?"

"Well," Joanna said, "besides the fact Joe, Chris, and Lance are all over there swapping spit and Lance called you and Chris sweetheart, they’re all three wearing rings like yours."

Lance pulled away from Joey then, smiling down at Joey and then giving Chris a quick kiss before he looked at Joanna. "If you’ll notice, Joanna, our rings are on the other hand," he said, lifting his right hand. "And if I were willing to take mine off, you’d see the inscription is completely different from JC and Justin’s. Though I must admit, the rings being on the other hand is mostly because Justin forgot he was supposed to put JC’s ring on his right hand."

Lance grinned at Justin, who just shrugged. "It’s where it belongs."

JC nodded, smiling, and reached to take Justin’s right hand with his left.

"So are you three just playing around?" Joanna asked, looking at Lance again and obviously confused.

Lance laughed and sat down next to Joey while Chris settled more comfortably in Joey’s lap. "Well, that depends on what you mean by playing around," Lance said after a moment. "We love to play, and we do it more often than we probably should, but we’re completely serious about how we feel about each other. We’re in love and we’re together, and we’re staying that way."

"All at once," Joanna said, making it sound like a statement, then she suddenly grinned. "That has to be so unbelievably hot to see."

Joey and Chris both laughed as Lance blushed again, then Chris smirked at Joanna and said, "You have no idea."

Lance made a face at Chris, still blushing a bit, and looked at Joanna as he changed the subject. "What were your other questions, Joanna?"

Joanna looked at Lance and then at Chris and Joey for a moment, smiling. "Well, you answered a lot of them already. How long have you guys been together? Am I just so dense I missed it, or is this new?"

Lance smiled. "Joe and I have been together almost a year, trying for pretty much that whole time to get the courage up to say something to Chris about how we feel. Friday night we were all talking after the concert and I slipped up and said something, and within a few hours everything had changed." Lance looked at JC and Justin and then at Joey and Chris before he looked back over at Joanna and grinned. "For the better."

"You’ve only been together a few days and you already have _rings_?! Isn’t that a little fast guys?" Joanna asked, obviously surprised.

Chris smiled. "Well, Joe and I already had our rings – it’s a long story – and it’s not like the other guys weren’t sure how they feel or something."

Lance nodded. "Yeah, there’s no doubt about JC and Justin, and I’ve been in love with Chris for years now, and I know Joey never stopped loving him. I have no doubts I’ll spend the rest of my life with these guys." Lance smiled at Chris and Joey, getting an answering smile from Joey and a grin from Chris.

Joanna looked at JC and Justin expectantly and JC raised his eyebrows. "What?"

Joanna rolled her eyes. "How can you be sure it’s permanent after just a few days?"

JC let out a little bark of a laugh. "Jo, I’ve been having sex with Justin for just a few days, yeah, but how I feel is not new. I’ve been in love with him for over six years, spending half my time daydreaming about him and the other half driving myself crazy trying to keep from letting him see how I felt. I haven’t got a single doubt in my mind that I can’t live without him."

Justin squeezed JC’s hand, smiling at him, and JC smiled at Justin.

"But he’s with Brit,” Joanna said. “Doesn’t that bother you?"

JC chuckled while Justin snorted and said, "I was never really with Brit. She’s one of my best friends and has a blast playing beard for me, and that’s it. Brit knew I was gay before _I_ did, and knows I’ve been in love with Josh pretty much since the day I met him."

Joanna just looked at them for a long moment then, thinking, and then asked, "If you two have been in love for so long, why did it take you this long to get together?"

Justin shrugged and JC gave her a wry grin as he said, "Justin thought I was straight and I thought he was, and we were both too chicken to ask and find out for sure."

"And Joey and I thought they _had_ to be straight since they weren’t together," Lance said, smiling. "But Chris knew more than he let on I think." Lance looked at Chris, amused.

"I didn’t know for sure, I just had a feeling." Chris looked over at JC and grinned. "A really strong feeling that was sort of confirmed when I made CDs for Josh with that idea in mind and he loved them."

JC chuckled. "I wondered how you knew exactly what songs to put on those CDs."

Chris smirked, smug. "I’m good."

Lance chuckled. "You are that, sweetheart, no doubt." He grinned at Chris and then looked over at Joanna again. "Anything else you want to know?"

Joanna nodded and looked at Justin. "Who did you write ‘ _Gone_ ’ for if you’re not really with Brit?"

Justin smiled. "It’s pretty obvious, really. Have you listened to the lyrics?"

Joanna snorted. "Of _course_ I have, I’ve heard that song a million times."

Justin’s smile widened. "Then you should know."

Joanna made a face at Justin as JC chuckled and said, "Just tell her, baby. Get it over with."

"Yeah, just tell me," Joanna said with a nod, giving Justin a funny look. Justin had always hated it when someone called him the baby of the group, but he didn’t seem to mind JC calling him that at all.

Justin grinned. "I’ll do better than that, I’ll show you." He let go of JC’s hand to stand and then walked around the table and into his room, disappearing inside for a long moment before he came back out with a battered purple CD case and headed to the stereo.

JC grinned as he recognized one of the CDs he’d made as soon as they were sure the album was done – _long_ before it went to production – and watched as Justin put the disc in, then pushed a few buttons.

They all listened to the familiar sound of the violin that began the song as Justin walked back to the table to lean up against it facing JC as he began to sing, smiling softly at JC. "’ _There_ _’_ _s a thousand words that I could say, to make you come home. Yeah. Seems so long ago you walked away, left me alone. And I remember what you said to me, you were acting so strange. And maybe I was too blind to see, that you needed a change. Was it something I said to make you turn away, to make you walk out and leave me cold? If I could just find a way to make it so that you were right here, right now... I_ _’_ _ve been sitting here, can_ _’_ _t get you off my mind, I_ _’_ _ve tried my best to be a man and be strong. I drove myself insane wishing I could touch your face_ ,’" Justin reached out and stroked JC’s cheek, smiling softly at him as he sang, "’ _but the truth remains you_ _’_ _re gone._ ’" Justin turned his head to look at Joanna as the chorus started playing and asked, "That answer your question?"

Joanna nodded, but she looking a bit confused still as Chris said, "I always said that story about writing that for Brit while she was at the hairdresser’s was a little lame."

Justin turned to look at Chris, grinning. "It’s the truth Chris, I did! I never said I wrote it _about_ her, just _for_ her. Brit was tired of listening to me whine about Josh not telling me where he’d be while we were on that break and wanted me to take my mind off of him, so she told me to write her a song while she was out getting new extensions one afternoon. I sat there doodling for a while, then ‘ _Gone_ ’ just hit me. Wade was there and he came up with the music, then left with Danny while I sat in Brit’s little studio and played with the song. When Britters got back she had me play it for her, and then she threw up her hands and said I was hopeless. She told me I could go mope in Orlando if all I wanted to do was be depressed, that she wasn’t listening to me cry in my Dew anymore."

Joey and Lance both chuckled at that while Chris laughed, but JC had been listening to the song while they talked, smiling, and when it finished he suddenly said, "The last verse... That’s how I felt then, too."

Justin turned back to smile at JC and sang softly, " _’_ _Oh what will I do, if I can_ _’_ _t be with you? Tell me where will I turn to, baby who will I be? Now that we are apart, am I still in your heart? Baby why don_ _’_ _t you see that I need you here with me?_ ’"

JC nodded. "Exactly. I wrote ‘ _Selfish_ ’ during that same break, while I was staying with Jake."

Chris and Lance exchanged a look at that, remembering JC had said he only stayed with Jake when Tony had done something bad enough JC couldn’t stand to be in the same house with him. They both looked back over at JC and Justin when JC began to sing softly a moment later.

" _’_ _Baby I would take good care of you, no matter what it is you_ _’_ _re going through. I_ _’_ _ll be there for you when you_ _’_ _re in need, baby believe in me..._ _‘_ _Cause if love is a crime, then punish me, I would die for you,_ _‘_ _cause I don_ _’_ _t want to live without you. Oh what can I do? You can call me selfish, but all I want is your love. You can call me hopeless, baby, because I_ _’_ _m hopelessly in love. You can call me unperfect, but who_ _’_ _s perfect? Tell me what do I gotta do, to prove that I_ _’_ _m the only one for you..._ _’_ "

Joanna watched JC and Justin while JC sang, thinking about the songs she’d heard the group perform a thousand times over the years. After a moment she asked, "You write about each other a lot, don’t you?"

Justin laughed. "I almost always write about Josh. He’s my inspiration."

Chris snorted. "For ‘ _Girlfriend_ ’? C’s beautiful, yeah, but he’s definitely not a girl, even if he _is_ afraid of spiders."

Joanna’s eyebrows went up at that. Chris thought JC was beautiful, and Lance kept calling JC sweetheart, but they weren’t all together?! That just did _not_ add up to her, not even almost.

Justin grinned at Chris and sat back down in his seat by JC. "The song wasn’t anything like it is now when I first wrote it. Well, the _music_ was the same, pretty much, but the lyrics were totally different."

Lance chuckled as Joey asked, "What did it sound like to begin with, Jup?"

Justin grinned and jumped up again to go back to the stereo and set it to play the fourth track on the CD. When the music started playing quietly he started swaying to it, grinning as he listened to the intro, then started the first verse, " _’_ _I don_ _’_ _t know why you care, she doesn_ _’_ _t even know you_ _’_ _re there._ _‘_ _Cause she don_ _’_ _t love your eyes, and she don_ _’_ _t love your smile, boy you know that ain_ _’_ _t fair. In the middle of the night, is she gonna be by your side? Or will she run and hide? You don_ _’_ _t know cause things ain_ _’_ _t clear. And baby when you cry, is she gonna stand by your side? Does the girl even know you_ _’_ _re alive? I got an idea... Why don_ _’_ _t you be my boyfriend, I_ _’_ _ll treat you good. I know you hear your friends when they say you should._ _‘_ _Cause if you were my boyfriend, I_ _’_ _d be your shining star, the one to show you where you are. Oh, you should be my boyfriend._ ’" Justin continued on through the song in a similar vein until the end.

JC was giggling by the time Justin finished the second verse while Joey, Chris, and Lance just stared at Justin in shock and Mike and Charlie fought the urge to laugh.

Joanna thought it was funny too, and that the look on Chris’ face was completely priceless. He looked like someone had just slapped him with a two-by-four or something.

"Dude," Joey said finally, "I hope you didn’t let Chad and Pharrell hear it like that."

Justin laughed. "Oh no, nobody but Britney has heard the original version until now."

Lance still looked a little wide-eyed. "That’s good."

Joanna nodded, covering her mouth with one hand and trying not to laugh, but Chris didn’t bother to hide his laugh as he said, "Very good."

JC finally stifled his giggles then to grin at Lance and say, "I thought it was cute."

Lance rolled his eyes. "Josh, sweetheart, you’re not the best judge."

Joanna had to grin. There Lance went with the ‘sweetheart’ bit again.

JC looked affronted. "Hey, I write good music!"

Lance chuckled. "Yes, you do, but you bought a t-shirt that says ‘ _My Boyfriend Can Kick Your Ass_ ’ for _yourself_."

Joanna finally started giggling at that, thinking it sounded like something JC would do as Justin laughed and turned back to the stereo to set it to play the next song, one JC had written that was titled ‘ _The Two Of Us_ ’. He turned it up just a bit and JC perked up, grinning as he jumped up to go around the table to the middle of the floor. JC didn’t say anything, just grinned and started dancing as the others watched, their eyes getting wider as the music sped up and JC’s feet moved steadily faster through the shag patterns he’d danced to just a couple of days before.

"Charlie... Come dance with me," JC said suddenly after the first chorus, still moving as he held out his hands to the younger redhead and grinned while Joanna wondered why JC didn’t ask Justin to dance.

"I’m gonna make such a fool of myself," Charlie said, but he didn’t hesitate to stand. He walked quickly over to take JC’s hands, and started dancing as the second verse started.

JC laughed. "Naw, you can do it, just look at me and go with the music. You can shag in your sleep."

Charlie grinned and did as he’d been told and they both moved through the steps, Justin grinning and watching them from by the stereo until the song ended.

JC grinned at Charlie and let go of his hands. "See? I told you that you could do it. You’re really good."

Charlie blushed. "No, I messed up several times."

JC snorted. "And it was the first time you’ve ever tried to shag that fast too, I’ll bet. Like I said, you did great."

Justin nodded, grinning. "Yeah Charlie, you’re gonna have to teach me to do that. Be ready to get your toes stepped on though, even if we use slower music."

Charlie shook his head and walked back to his chair to sit down. "You won’t, Justin. You’re really good on your feet when you want to be."

Chris laughed, nodding. "And I’m not the only one who’s noticed it’s only when he wants to be!"

Justin stuck his tongue out at Chris while the others laughed.

Joanna chuckled. "Are there any songs you two have written that weren’t about each other? Besides ‘ _Pop_ ’ and ‘ _Celebrity_ ’ I mean, those two are obvious."

JC shrugged as Justin grinned at Joanna and moved, wrapping his arms around JC from behind as he said, "Wade did most of the writing on those two, and on ‘ _See Right Through You_ ’. Everything else I’ve done was about Josh or inspired by him, even ‘ _I_ _’_ _ll Be Good For You_ ’ and that Christmas song we did together."

JC leaned back against Justin and turned his head to look at him, smiling. "I was thinking about you then, too. We hadn’t been home for Christmas the year before and already knew then we wouldn’t be that year either, and I found myself thinking wherever you were was home, and that you and the guys are my family, and how much I love y’all. The song was easy after that."

Justin smiled at JC. "Momma and the kids are your family too, Josh, they all love you. Not quite as much the guys do, or nearly as much as I do, but nobody loves you like us." Justin gave him a bright grin then that JC returned, and JC wasn’t at all surprised when Justin kissed him.

Joanna’s eyebrows went up a bit when Justin kissed JC – she would have thought JC would take the lead from the way they were acting – even though Justin kept it a simple kiss until JC turned slightly in his arms to offer Justin a better angle, wordlessly giving permission for more. Joanna watched them, wishing for her camcorder as Justin slowly explored JC’s mouth with his tongue and then trailed little kisses across JC’s jaw while JC just leaned his head to one side with his eyes closed and a little smile, letting Justin do as he pleased. Justin kissed and nuzzled at the soft skin behind JC’s ear and then down his neck a bit before he suddenly ducked his head with a wicked little grin to nibble at a spot low on JC’s throat.

JC opened his eyes quickly as he giggled and hunched his shoulders. "Baby!"

Everyone but Chris grinned as they watched JC try to squirm away while Justin easily held him, still nibbling and licking at JC’s neck, but Chris smirked and said, "I still say the boy’s part vampire."

Justin finally lifted his head at that and stuck his tongue out at Chris as he moved his feet slightly so that he was even closer to JC and had his feet behind and to either side of the older man’s. "I like kissing his neck and he likes it too, he told me so."

JC made a face and gave Justin a wry look over his shoulder. "Well, yeah, but it’s more fun in private, baby."

Justin grinned wickedly. "Don’t I know it!"

JC blushed at that while Lance and Chris laughed, and Joanna grinned and said, "Y’know, ‘Chelle would kill to get to watch you guys together like this, and I know you can trust her. She’d be real quiet, I promise."

JC’s eyes widened and he looked at Joanna, shaking his head quickly. "No, please, Shelly already acts like she thinks I’m nothing but a ditzy poof, she—"

"Hey!" Lance interrupted him, "being a Poof isn’t all that bad!"

Justin laughed as JC gave Lance a sheepish grin. "Sorry, Scoop. I don’t really think of you as the ‘Poofu’ type anymore, somewhere along the way you turned into a definite ‘Daddy Bass’."

Joanna laughed at that while Chris and Joey both grinned and nodded, then Justin chuckled and said, "Nah, he’s still our Poofu, all you have to do is tickle him and it’s obvious."

Lance made a face. "Justin, please. I’d just as soon everyone forgot that."

Joanna spoke up then, amused. "I didn’t mean Shelly anyway, I wouldn’t ask you guys to invite _her_ anywhere. I meant Michelle. Y’know, the short blue-eyed Latin girl who does your makeup?" She grinned at them.

Lance raised an eyebrow. "Why Michelle? Wouldn’t Julie be less likely to say anything?"

Joanna laughed. "Julie would be gossiping as fast as she could get to a phone! No, Michelle’s safe enough. She would never say anything that could out you guys, and she’d love to watch y’all just talk, much less kissing and cuddling. She has a bit of a crush on all of you, especially you, Lance, but don’t tell her I said anything."

"Why would you want us to encourage her? We’re not on the market, Joanna, not even almost," Lance said.

Joanna grinned. "Neither is Michelle. I don’t share, not even for you, boss."

Chris’ eyebrows went up at that. "Whoa, you and Michelle?!"

Joanna looked smug. "For almost two years now. You guys really should pay more attention. Why did you think Michelle and Julie moved onto the bus with me and Melinda?"

Lance laughed, looking a bit surprised. "You told me it was so we wouldn’t need as many buses this tour, but I thought it was so Julie and Melinda could be together."

Joanna made a face. "Eww, no. It was so _Michelle and I_ could be together more without causing ‘Chelle any problems. Melinda’s straight, thank God, and knows if she outs Michelle I’ll hunt her down and yank her bald. Julie doesn’t care who knows about her since she’s been out for years, but Michelle hasn’t even told her family that she’s bi yet, much less that she’s been with me for so long."

"What about you?" Mike asked.

"My mother’s known I was bi since I was in high school and she caught me with my friend Lloyd and a cheerleader he’d been dating a while." Joanna grinned. "I learned to make out at other people’s houses after that, and my mom learned to knock on my door."

Lance looked bemused while Chris and Joey both laughed, but JC was a bit wide-eyed as he asked, "And your mother didn’t get upset?"

Joanna shook her head, smiling. "No, my mom’s not the straightest lady you’ll meet either, so she had no problem with it. Of course, my _dad_ doesn’t know... About either of us." She laughed at that, then looked at her watch and said, "Good grief, I’ve been bugging you guys for almost an hour. I’ll leave to let you go get packed up." She looked at Lance and smiled as she said, "If you think of anything you need me to handle give me a holler, boss. I’ll have my cell with me even when Michelle and I go to the beach. She made me promise her an afternoon of sun at least once this week, seeing as how this is our ‘week off’ and all." Joanna chuckled.

Lance grinned. "That’s fine, but do really take at least the weekend off, Jo. There’s no telling when we’ll have our next break. Get one of the credit cards and take Michelle and Julie shopping or something, you girls deserve it."

Joanna grinned and started towards the door. "If you say so, boss, but I’m gonna tell them it was your idea. My girl loves to shop almost as much as Justin does, and Julie’s a pro at cruising a mall. Between the two of them they may make you regret giving us a credit card, even for a day!" She laughed at that, and then waved as she reached the door. "Bye guys. Play hard the rest of the week if you want, but really rest on Sunday. Monday morning really early we hit the road again, starting with a photo shoot Monday afternoon in Atlanta, and you have to look like you rested at least a little bit this week!"

Chris, Joey, and Justin all laughed at that while Lance grinned and said, "Have fun."

Joanna waved again, grinning, and left.

Lance looked around at the other guys as he stood up and said, "Well guys, she was right, it’s after noon. We’d better get started packing." He looked at where JC and Justin still stood together and then grinned. "And Justin, be sure you check the whole room, okay? The last thing we need is the hotel staff wondering why your underwear is on the desk lamp."

Justin blushed and laughed slightly as JC grinned and said, "That wasn’t his fault. Those damn button-fly jeans annoyed me, and by the time I finally got to his underwear I didn’t really care where they went as long as it was away."

Charlie blushed at the vivid mental image that gave him while Justin laughed, nodding.

Chris grinned at Lance from his place curled up in Joey’s lap. "See, Scoop? Josh throws things when he’s horny too, it’s not just me!"

Lance rolled his eyes and started towards his room. "Well I’m not cleaning up after either of you, and we’re leaving here in an hour so get your asses in gear."

Mike and Charlie both got up to head for their room then, and Justin let go of JC to begin gathering the CDs he’d left by the stereo while JC grabbed the bags of stuff he’d bought the night before.

Within a minute or two Chris and Joey were the only ones left in the living area of the suite, and Chris sat comfortably in Joey’s lap for a bit with his head on Joey’s shoulder before he finally lifted his head and smiled at him. "We probably should go get started, Joe-bear. I think he meant it."

Joey chuckled. "You and I both _know_ he meant it, Critter."

Chris grinned. "You’re right, but my stuff’s not very scattered. We’ve got time for a kiss, right?"

Joey pretended to think a second, then grinned and nodded. "I think so, yeah."

Lance walked out of their room five minutes later to sort the bags on the couch and snorted when he saw Joey and Chris were kissing with Joey’s shirt in the floor and Chris’ half off. "I meant it you two, play later. I’m not packing for you!"

Chris reluctantly pulled away from Joey to pout at Lance. "But baby, Joe-bear wants to play and so do I."

Lance picked up several bags and started towards their room again. "So get your junk packed first. If you hurry you’ll have time for a quickie while Justin cleans up the mess he made in their room, and if you get _really_ lucky I might even join you."

Lance disappeared back into their room as Joey and Chris looked at each other, then both grinned. Joey helped Chris to his feet and then stood, grabbing his shirt as they both hurried towards their room. Lance hid a smirk when they walked in, thinking there was no other way to get those two to move that fast – well, separately at least – and hoping Justin would take a while. An hour wasn’t very long after all, and the longer Justin and JC took to pack the more time they would have to play.

 

 


	46. Chapter 46

 

~~~~46~~~~

 

JC was more than half done putting away the clothes they’d bought the night before when he realized Justin had gotten really quiet. He looked around to see what he was doing to find Justin sitting on the bed, smiling and watching him and still holding the bag of CDs he’d said he would put away.

JC smiled, amused. "Baby, what are you doing?"

"Watching you," Justin replied immediately, his smile widening. "And thinking about how beautiful you are."

JC blushed. "I am not."

Justin stood, dropping the bag of compact discs on the bed with a muted clatter as he walked over to rest his hands on JC’s hips, still smiling at him. "Yes, you are. Even if I’m wrong, the guys and a million screaming teenage girls can’t all be wrong too, Josh."

JC laughed at that. "But I’m not Justin, really!"

Justin snorted softly. "Even if you weren’t such a wonderful person in here," he tapped JC’s chest, "you’ve got a gorgeous body and a beautiful face," he stroked JC’s cheek, smiling, "that I love to look at, and I’m going to keep telling you that you’re beautiful until you believe me, even if it takes me twenty years." He paused a beat and then grinned and added, "You ought to just give in now, you know I’m always right."

JC chuckled at that, blushing a bit at the unfounded – to him at least – praise. "Baby, you’re something else."

"I know it." Justin grinned and gave him a quick kiss, then let go of him and walked over to the bed to pick the bag of CDs back up. He began putting them in his backpack with all the others a moment later, thinking he’d need another bag just for their music by the end of the week.

JC watched Justin a moment and then turned back to putting away the clothes, not bothering to remove the tags from them as he tucked them into his suitcase and thought about what Justin had said. JC thought he was too skinny and had a big nose and his ears stuck out and his hands were almost as delicate as a girl’s and he was _always_ saying things that made him look like a complete idiot and—

JC was startled out of his thoughts by the soft brush of a kiss against the back of his neck and hands settling at his waist, then he heard Justin’s amused voice murmur, "Stop thinking so hard, I can hear you all the way across the room."

JC flushed and kept putting the clothes away, not looking at Justin. "What was I thinking about then?"

Justin grinned, sliding his hands around to rest them on JC’s stomach as he stepped up closer behind him and leaned in close to his ear to whisper, "Me."

JC had to smile at that, turning his head slightly to look at Justin. "Conceited much?"

"Nope," Justin replied immediately, still grinning. "I’m right, aren’t I?"

JC put the last shirt into his suitcase and turned in Justin’s grasp to look at him, smiling as he rested both hands on Justin’s waist. "Maybe."

Justin grinned even wider as he said smugly, "Uh-huh, that’s what I thought."

JC grinned. "Lemme go, I need to get started picking up all this stuff."

Justin pouted and tightened his grip a bit, moving closer again. "But I wanted to kiss you, and hold you, and maybe even coax you out of these jeans..."

JC chuckled, shaking his head. "No, baby, I meant it when I said only after the room’s done, _if_ we have time." JC leaned to give Justin a quick kiss. "Now let me go, I have to go get us a laundry bag to put these dirty clothes in."

Justin let go of him, still pouting. "Fine, be that way. I’ll just put up the junk I bought and be horny all by myself while you go off without me."

JC laughed and started towards the door, teasing, "But I thought you didn’t do that." Justin’s eyes widened, then he blushed and opened his mouth to speak but before he could JC was walking out the door as he said with a smirk, "I’ll be right back."

JC crossed the living room towards the room the other three were sharing to knock lightly on the door, and then he asked, "Guys? Can I come in a sec?"

"Sure," Lance called.

JC opened the door and stepped inside just as Chris looked up from stuffing clothes in a laundry bag and said, "Whoa, dude! Josh is all alone with us in our room. Quick Joe, get the camera. I want pictures!"

JC laughed, pausing in the open doorway. "I’ll only be here a minute."

"Oooh, he wants a quickie," Chris teased, his grin turning to a smirk when JC blushed.

Lance swatted at Chris. "Behave, you." He grinned at JC and asked, "What’d you need?"

JC gave Lance a sheepish grin, still blushing. "A laundry bag. I don’t have one, but I thought there was one in Justin’s suitcase, so I didn’t ask you to get another off the bus. There’s not."

Lance chuckled. "The only one I have is the one Chris’ filling now, or should be." He gave Chris a pointed look, making Chris grin at him and bend to pick up another t-shirt as Lance looked back over at JC. "Mike had at least two yesterday morning though, and some clean clothes you need to put up too, so you could go get one from him."

JC grinned and nodded. "Okay, thanks Scoop!"

Lance smiled. "No problem." He went back to putting his laptop back into his backpack.

JC turned and left, closing the door behind him before he walked quickly across the living area again to the door to Mike and Charlie’s suite. He didn’t see either of them, but the clothes and laundry bags were still on the table so he walked over and began sorting the clothes into neat piles. After only a few minutes he realized that more than half of them were his or Justin’s, and since he knew there wasn’t enough room in their suitcases for them all he carefully started putting the folded clothes in one of the empty laundry bags.

JC was almost done when he heard the door to Mike and Charlie’s bedroom and looked up to see Mike carrying a gym bag towards the door to the suite with a grin, his blond hair hanging loose around his shoulders.

JC grinned. "If you two are ready to go now, you’ll have a long wait."

Mike looked very different with his hair down, older somehow, and JC found himself wondering why he tied it back so much of the time. There was no doubt in JC’s mind that Mike was gorgeous, but he was equally sure Mike didn’t really care about his good looks beyond the fact Charlie liked them. Mike was obviously devoted to Charlie, and the feeling was just as obviously mutual even though Charlie was having a harder time with the whole ‘coming out’ idea. JC had grown up with the man he loved, yes, and seen him almost every day for years, but JC hadn’t had what Charlie did. Charlie had lived with a protector, brother, lover and best friend all rolled into one at his side for years, and JC couldn’t help but envy them both just a little bit.

Charlie walked out with his own bag as Mike chuckled and replied, "I’m sure we’ll think of something to keep us occupied."

Charlie blushed a bit and started across the room to put his stuff with Mike’s as he mumbled, "Knowing you, you already have."

Mike put his bag down and grinned, watching Charlie walk towards him. "You’re the one who pulled my hair loose, and you only do that when you’re—"

"Okay," Charlie interrupted him, blushing even redder. "I had the same idea, I admit it."

JC chuckled, putting the last of his clothes in the bag and then swinging it to his shoulder. "Well, Justin had the same idea as you two, only we’ve got more of a mess to clean up because he’s never learned Mom doesn’t come on tour with him to pick up after him. Lance wanted to leave by one, but one-thirty or even two is a better bet since Joe and Chris aren’t gonna let him get in that big of a hurry." JC gave the two teens a quick grin as he picked up the empty laundry bag and then he started for the door. "We’ll probably be busy the rest of the afternoon, so have fun while you can. I know I’m going to."

JC winked at them and then was through the door into the other suite, going straight to his room and opening the door to hear quiet music playing and Justin singing along to one of JC’s favorite songs by Jewel, ‘ _Morning Song_ _’_. JC paused at the door, grinning as he watched Justin sway and sing while he picked up the clothes out of the floor – dirty or not – and flung them towards the bed to make a rather sloppy pile.

" _’_ _Let the phone ring, let_ _’_ _s go back to sleep... Let the world spin outside our door, you_ _’_ _re the only one that I wanna see. Tell your boss you_ _’_ _re sick, hurry, get back in I_ _’_ _m getting cold. Get over here and warm my hands up, boy, it_ _’_ _s you they love to hold. And stop thinking about what your sister said, stop worrying about it, the cat_ _’_ _s already been fed... Come on darlin_ _’_ _, let_ _’_ _s go back to bed. Put the phone machine on hold, leave the dishes in the sink. Don_ _’_ _t answer the phone, it_ _’_ _s you that I adore_ _–_ _I_ _’_ _m gonna give you some more._ ’"

JC started singing along at the beginning of the next verse, making Justin look up in surprise and break off to listen to how JC’s voice harmonized effortlessly with Jewel’s. "’ _We_ _’_ _ll sit on the front porch, the sun can warm my feet. You can drink your coffee with sugar and cream, I_ _’_ _ll drink my decaf herbal tea. Pretend we_ _’_ _re perfect strangers, and that we never met. My how you remind me of a man I used to sleep with, that_ _’_ _s a face I_ _’_ _d never forget. You can be Henry Miller and I_ _’_ _ll be Anais Nin, except this time it_ _’_ _ll be even better, we_ _’_ _ll stay together in the end... Come on darlin_ _’_ _, let_ _’_ _s go back to bed._ ’"

Justin joined JC for the chorus then, grinning as they sang softly, " _’_ _Put the phone machine on hold, leave the dishes in the sink. Don_ _’_ _t answer the door, it_ _’_ _s you that I adore_ _–_ _I_ _’_ _m gonna give you some more_.’"

JC smiled when the song ended. "I love that song."

"Me too, it always makes me think of you," Justin said with a smile as ‘ _Hands_ ’ started. "Now c’mon, Josh. Get in here so we can get this done."

"I am," JC said with a grin, walking in and shutting the door before he crossed to the bed and sat down the bag of clean clothes. "Here," he said, handing Justin the empty bag," start putting the dirty clothes in here. Just the dirty ones though, okay baby?"

Justin grinned and nodded. "And you finish picking up the rest and then put the clean ones up."

JC chuckled. "Deal, now get busy!"

Justin grinned and started sorting the clothes he’d piled on the bed as JC began picking up their things, tossing more clothes on the bed and pitching Justin’s shoes over by the door where he’d be sure to find them.

JC finished picking up the stuff in the floor just as the next song on the CD started, and he smiled. He began singing along softly to ‘ _Near You Always_ ’ while he started folding the clean clothes mixed in amongst the stuff on the bed, not at all surprised most of it was Justin’s. Justin had a bad habit of tossing clothes in the floor when he was rooting through a suitcase, and he seldom remembered to pick any of it back up.

Justin finished bagging the dirty clothes and paused to watch, smiling as he listened to JC sing, " _’_ _Please don_ _’_ _t bring me flowers, they only whisper, the sweet things you_ _’_ _d say. Don_ _’_ _t try to understand me, your hands already know too much anyway, it just makes me want to make you near me always. And when you look into my eyes please know my heart is in your hands. It_ _’_ _s nothing that I understand, but when in your arms you have complete power over me. Be gentle if you please_ _‘_ _cause your hands are in my hair but my heart is in your teeth, baby, and it makes me want to make you near me always. Your hands are in my hair, but my heart is in your teeth, baby, and it makes me want to make you near me always..._ ’"

Justin carried the dirty laundry and their suitcases out of the room while JC folded the last of the clean clothes and tucked them into the laundry bag of clean clothes. JC was thinking they’d definitely need more luggage by the end of the week, since they’d almost doubled what they were carrying already and it was only Wednesday. With them being in town it was almost inevitable that they’d make at least one more shopping trip – they all enjoyed shopping together, even though Lance tried to deny it – so JC was sure there would be even more to move when they packed to leave Pawley’s. Justin put their things with Lance, Joey, and Chris’ suitcases near the door to the suite, then went to use the bathroom and gather up the stuff from in there, planning to add it to their gym bags.

JC didn’t look up from closing the bag of clean clothes when Justin walked in carrying the box and their shaving kits, and Justin stopped in the doorway to watch him. JC had turned the little CD player off and was singing softly without it, a song unfamiliar to Justin but that he liked the sound of. " _’_ _I can_ _’_ _t get no sleep, wishing you were here with me... I_ _’_ _ve got to have you to fulfill my needs_ _‘_ _cause it_ _’_ _s your energy baby, that_ _’_ _s just my speed, I_ _’_ _ve got to have it baby, give it to me. So what ya gonna do, boy, you gonna give it a try?_ _‘_ _Cause now it_ _’_ _s all on you boy, sugar don_ _’_ _t be shy,_ _‘_ _cause it_ _’_ _s just between you and I_.’"

JC swung the bag of clean clothes off the bed then and carried it over to put it on the bunk beds, moving his head slightly to music only he could hear as he kept singing, " _’_ _You knew, what you were getting into, when you stepped inside the room, and you turned and locked the door._ _‘_ _Cause you, do, those freaky things I like to do, baby tell me what you want_ _‘_ _cause I_ _’_ _d do anything for y_ _—_ ‘" JC glanced up and saw Justin in the door finally then and broke off with a grin to say, "Baby, get in here so we can get the rest of our stuff put up."

Justin grinned and walked the rest of the way in the room, pausing to shut the door. "Who does that one, babe? I’ve never heard it before."

JC gave him a little wry grin and Justin carried the box and shaving kits over to drop them on the lower bunk with their gym bags. "You probably won’t hear it again, either. Wild Orchid broke up not long after I gave them the song."

Justin looked at JC in surprise and walked over to him as he asked, "You wrote that?"

JC nodded. "Yeah, and produced it too when the girls recorded it, but their album hadn’t come out yet when they decided to break up. I doubt it’ll ever be released now."

Justin wrapped his arms around JC’s waist with a little grin. "That’s a shame. It’s a good song, or at least what I heard was good. How did that ‘what you gonna do’ part go again?"

JC chuckled and lifted his arms to cross his wrists casually behind Justin’s neck, his blue eyes twinkling as he sang softly, " _’_ _So what ya gonna do boy, you gonna give it a try?_ _‘_ _Cause now it_ _’_ _s all on you boy, sugar don_ _’_ _t be shy,_ _‘_ _cause it_ _’_ _s just between you and I._ ’"

Justin didn’t bother to answer before he kissed JC, slipping his hands down over JC’s ass to pull him closer. One of JC’s hands moved into Justin’s curls and the other began to glide slowly down Justin’s chest and then around his waist.

They kissed for only a few moments before JC began pulling Justin towards the bed, making Justin chuckle and break the kiss to grin at JC and say, "I thought I was supposed to be the horny one around here."

JC grinned wickedly and slid both hands to the waistband of Justin’s jeans, slipping his fingers inside the front to tug firmly on them as he backed another step towards the bed. "Yeah, well, you thought wrong, baby. Don’t be shy, get that gorgeous ass of yours over here."

Justin laughed and let JC tug him over to the bed, taking advantage of the fact JC’s hands were busy to unbutton JC’s jeans. "So you like my ass, huh?"

JC smirked. "You haven’t been paying attention, I love everything about you," before he opened Justin’s jeans, glad Justin hadn’t put on button-fly jeans for once.

Justin grinned smugly and slid his hands up under JC’s shirt, lightly stroking up his sides. "I must be pretty hot, then."

JC laughed and lifted his arms to let Justin pull off his shirt. "I’m gonna have to buy you some more hats."

Justin dropped the t-shirt, still grinning but a little lost as he pulled off his own shirt. "And why is that?"

JC smirked as he kicked out of his jeans – he had gone commando again that morning, he’d found it made it easier to hide the effect Justin had on him from the others – and then sat on the edge of the bed. "‘Cause you’re never gonna fit the hats you have at the rate your ego’s growing."

Justin laughed, torn between being amused and indignant as JC reached for his jeans again. "I don’t have that high of an opinion of myself!"

JC chuckled softly, then grinned up at him and pulled Justin’s jeans and boxers down as he said, "Yeah baby, you do, but it’s okay. I love your ego, too."

Justin snorted and put his hands on JC’s shoulders to push him to his back on the bed, kicking out of the last of his clothes. "You’re being mean, I’m gonna have to make you regret it." He grinned at JC and climbed on the bed to straddle his hips, then asked, "Whatever will I do, hmm?"

JC grinned and rested his hands on Justin’s thighs, looking up at him. "I dunno, baby. I can’t think of a thing that would make me regret telling you the truth."

Justin laughed and rested his hands on JC’s sides. "I think I’m going to tickle you breathless," Justin said with a wicked little grin as he began to lightly tickle JC, not really serious about it. "And then I’m going to practice some more, I still haven’t quite gotten d—"

JC laughed as he slid his hands up Justin’s thighs and interrupted him to say, "Why don’t we skip the tickling and go straight to practicing? I’d be happy to demonstrate again if you like."

Justin pretended to think for all of a second, then grinned and rolled off JC, pulling JC with him as he moved so that they both wound up sprawled across the end of the bed with JC on top.

"Learn me," Justin said with a smirk, making JC laugh again before he leaned down to kiss him.

 

 

 

Lance walked out of the room he’d shared with Joey and Chris at five minutes to two, grinning when he saw Mike sprawled on the couch with Charlie draped across his lap, both of them looking quite comfortable and more than half asleep.

Charlie lifted his head from Mike’s shoulder when he saw Lance and smiled at him, blushing only a bit. "Hope you don’t mind us waiting in here."

Lance shook his head, smiling. "Oh no, not a bit. I hope you haven’t spent the last two hours sitting here waiting on us though."

Mike grinned. "We’ve only been here for a little while. I think we all had the same general idea of how to enjoy our free time."

Charlie blushed a little redder and moved to sit next to Mike as Lance chuckled and said, "Good for you. Grab whatever time together you can, it’s the time you could have spent together but didn’t that you’ll regret later."

Joey walked out of the door behind Lance and gave the pair on the couch a quick grin before he headed to the kitchen just as Chris walked out to wrap his arms around Lance from behind. "We ‘bout ready to go, baby?" Chris asked, grinning as he nuzzled Lance’s cheek.

Lance chuckled and rested his hands on Chris’ where they were draped around his waist, turning his head to kiss Chris before he replied. "We are, I don’t know about Josh and Jup though." He looked over at Mike and Charlie and asked, "Have you two seen them?"

Charlie shook his head as Mike said, "No, and haven’t heard a peep either."

"Well, they’re probably asleep then. If they were still playing you’d hear them out here, they can get pretty noisy." Lance chuckled again and patted Chris’ arms. "Lemme go, sweetheart, and I’ll go get them."

Chris let him go and started towards the kitchen as Joey paused by the refrigerator door to grin and ask, "Babe, why is it you always get to wake them up?"

Lance grinned at Joey and walked towards JC and Justin’s room. "Because I said so, that’s why."

Chris snorted. "‘Cause you wanna ogle Joshua, you mean."

Mike and Charlie both grinned at that as Lance paused to knock on JC and Justin’s door, smirking over his shoulder at Chris. "I always did say the fringe benefits of my job are pretty neat."

Joey and Chris both chuckled as Joey began taking stuff out of the fridge to pick what they would take out to Pawleys and what they’d leave for their bodyguards to eat. They expected to leave about half of it and only take their favorites like the sweets, lasagna and roast, and leave behind the spaghetti and the other types of pasta. Joey and Lance were both better than average cooks and even enjoyed cooking, so they were actually looking forward to a few days of cooking for themselves and the other guys.

There was no answer after the first knock so Lance knocked again a bit more loudly, and when he still got no reaction from JC or Justin he tried the doorknob. It was unlocked so he opened the door and went in, closing it behind him before he looked towards the bed to see that JC was sprawled flat on his back with Justin’s head on his chest and a blanket pulled up over both of them. They were sound asleep and Lance grinned, wondering what they’d done to put them out so thoroughly since he’d knocked pretty loudly and it wasn’t like they’d been up since six am or something.

 ‘ _Well, unless they had been up that long_ ,’ Lance thought with a grin, remembering that Justin had mentioned JC eating a snack at four am. If they’d had sex after that – or knowing them even stayed up playing around until then – that would explain them needing a nap.

Lance walked over to the side of the bed and reached down to shake Justin’s shoulder and then JC’s as he said, "C’mon you two, wake up." Justin groaned and pulled the blanket up over his head as JC stirred, making Lance chuckle. "Covering up your head ain’t gonna help, Curly. you still have to get up."

JC gave Lance a wry little smile and blinked sleepily as he absently rubbed Justin’s back under the blanket. "What time is it?"

Lance smiled. "Right at two o’clock."

"AM or PM?" Justin asked, pulling the blanket down just enough to look up at Lance.

Lance laughed. "PM. I doubt you’ve been asleep long."

JC snorted softly, amused. "Twenty minutes, maybe."

Justin pulled the blanket back up over his head. "I’m going back to sleep. Wake me up when we get there."

JC laughed and goosed Justin’s ribs. "Oh no, baby. If I gotta get up, you do too!"

Justin squirmed away from JC’s hand, pulling the blanket with him as he whined, "But I don’t wanna, Josh. I’m _sleepy_..."

Lance watched them, grinning as JC chuckled and sat up to grab the blanket before Justin pulled it completely off of him. "So sleep in the truck, baby. You’re getting out of bed if I have to push you off in the floor!"

Justin pulled the blanket back off of his head again and pouted at JC. "You wouldn’t."

JC grinned. "Try me."

Justin looked at him for a moment and then suddenly grinned. "You would, wouldn’t you."

JC grinned a little wider and tugged on the blanket, pulling enough of it towards him that one of Justin’s legs was bared almost to the hip. "Yup, and first I’d steal the blanket. Let Lance get a good look at you for a change."

Lance laughed. "I already have."

JC snorted and gave Lance a little grin. "How did I know that’d be what you said?"

Lance smirked. "Maybe because I’m the one who always wakes you two up?"

Justin sat up and scooted over next to JC to get further under the blanket as he looked at Lance measuringly, then he grinned. "So? What’d you think?"

Lance grinned back at him and was about to answer when JC said, "Quit fishing for compliments, baby." JC looked up at Lance and added, "We’ll be out in a minute."

Lance chuckled and turned to go. "I can take a hint. Don’t take too long you two, I’d like to be settled in by dark and we’ve got to stop on the way there to do some shopping."

"We won’t, I promise," JC said, then suddenly giggled, making Lance look back towards the bed as he opened the door to see Justin tickling JC, the blanket already slipping badly as JC tried to push him away.

Lance laughed as he walked out to leave them alone, thinking that from what they’d said about half the time they spent in bed they were playing or talking and wondering if they would ever get tired of it. Chris had so much energy that it often took Lance and Joey both to really tire him out, but once they managed to, all three would sleep the rest of the night. Lance had a feeling JC and Justin woke each other up several times a night, and he had no idea how they managed to be awake all day too.

Chris and Joey both looked over when Lance walked back out. "What’s so funny?" Chris asked, grinning.

Lance grinned. "Justin’s tickling JC again."

Chris’ eyebrows went up and his grin turned wicked as he asked, "Naked?"

Lance snorted and walked over to sit down at the table, where Mike, Charlie, and Chris were all sitting and watching Joey set out dishes of food. "Yeah," Lance said, "as if it matters."

"Oh it matters," Chris said with a smirk. "Tickling someone who’s naked is a whole lot more fun and usually leads to sex, especially with those two."

Charlie blushed at that but Mike just grinned, thinking Chris was right. Charlie wasn’t at all ticklish but Mike was, and Charlie had been known to use that knowledge against him shamelessly when he felt like it, which happened to be when they were in bed more often than not.

Lance chuckled. "Well I don’t think this time it will, they looked pretty wiped out to me. They were both out cold when I went in there, and Justin wasn’t at all thrilled at the prospect of getting up."

Joey laughed. "I think Jup could get it up for JC no matter how tired he is, baby."

Charlie and Mike both blushed hotly at that, though Mike didn’t blush quite as red as Charlie did.

"Joey!" Lance said with a grin, "That is not what I meant!"

Chris smirked. "Maybe not, but Joe-bear has a point. The kid’s got it bad."

"Looks like he has it pretty _good_ to me," Charlie said, then his eyes widened and he covered his burning face with his hands. "Mike, tell me I did not just say that out loud."

Mike chuckled, still blushing a bit. "Sorry, babe, you know I won’t lie to you."

Lance, Joey, and Chris all laughed at that.

 

 


	47. Chapter 47

 

~~~~47~~~~

 

JC ushered Justin out of their room about ten minutes later, JC carrying Justin’s shoes and a laundry bag while Justin carried their gym bags. Justin had a t-shirt slung over his shoulder and was looking more than a bit grumpy as he crossed to the door and put the bags down, then walked over to flop down in one of the two empty chairs at the table. JC followed him, grinning, and dropped the shoes by Justin’s chair, pausing to ruffle Justin’s hair before he walked on into the kitchen.

The other five watched in silence with varyingly amused expressions as JC looked in the nearly-empty fridge and got out the last Dr. Pepper and the candy bar he’d left in the door, then walked back over to sit by Justin.

JC opened the Dr. Pepper and offered it to Justin as he said, "Here baby, this’ll pep you up."

Justin snorted as he took it, making a face at JC. "I doubt that." Justin took a drink anyway though, ready to try anything to give him a bit more energy.

"Sleepy?" Chris asked with a smirk, unable to hold back any longer. Justin was famous for being a grouch if they had to get up before six in the morning, yeah, but not at two in the afternoon.

Justin gave him a dirty look. "No, I’m not sleepy! I just wanna go stretch out someplace – a bed would be good but the floor’ll do, I ain’t picky – and rest for a day or two. I’m exhausted."

JC chuckled and opened the candy bar. "C’mon baby, you can’t be _that_ tired. I’m not, and you didn’t do anything I didn’t." JC took a bite of the candy bar and watched Justin with a little grin, missing the look Lance, Joey, and Chris exchanged at the fact JC was eating yet again.

"I seem to recall I was doing most of the work," Justin said with a snort, making Joey, Chris, and Lance all laugh.

JC just grinned. "Well now, baby, you didn’t _have_ to—"

"I know that," Justin interrupted him, "but I’m still tired and I still wanna go veg out for a while."

"What’d you do that was so exhausting, Juppy?" Chris asked with a smirk as JC took another bite of his candy bar and watched with a grin.

Justin set the half-empty Dr. Pepper on the table and gave Chris a level look. "I had sex. Hot, fun, _exhausting_ Chasez sex. More than once. And now I’m tired. Is that okay with you?"

Charlie blushed bright red at that while JC barely succeeded in keeping a reasonably straight face, his blue eyes sparkling with suppressed mirth as he chewed a mouthful of chocolate and pretended he didn’t want to laugh his head off.

Lance and Joey both grinned as Chris laughed and said, "Yeah, kid, that’s okay."

Justin snorted and said sarcastically, "I’m so glad." He sat up a little straighter then and pulled on his t-shirt, then flopped back in the chair again and looked at JC. "Next time it’s my turn to just lay back and enjoy."

JC laughed. "Baby, I told you—"

"I know," Justin interrupted him, the slight glint in his blue eyes the only indication he was beginning to be amused. "I’m just sayin’, next time it’s my turn."

Lance chuckled, shaking his head. "Justin, you didn’t seem all that tired when you were tickling JC right after I woke y’all up. Why are you now?"

Justin blushed slightly and said, "No comment.” He looked at JC and asked, "Babe, can I have a bite?"

JC grinned and handed the candy bar over as Lance looked at him, then Chris asked, "Are you gonna tell us? Y’all weren’t in there very long."

JC picked up the Dr. Pepper Justin had set in front of him as he smirked at Chris. "I don’t go for public places, but you’re not the only one who knows how to enjoy a quickie."

JC took a drink then, and Joey and Chris both laughed as Lance grinned at Justin and said, "I thought you said you would be taking your time with Josh?"

Justin snorted. "It was his idea."

Lance looked surprised as Chris smirked at JC and said, "Yep, you’re gonna completely corrupt the kid, if you don’t wear him out first."

JC just grinned at Chris and then took another drink before he said, "Justin just has to learn his limits, and the only way he’s gonna do that is to go past’em and regret it later."

Justin swatted half-heartedly at JC and pouted. "You’re mean."

"Well," JC said with a little grin, "I could always say _no_ when you get all—"

"Okay, okay, you’re not mean!" Justin interrupted quickly. "You’re my best friend in the whole world, and the man I love, and I’m spending the rest of my life with you." Justin paused a moment, then grinned a little. "Hopefully having lots of sexy fun, just not quite so much right before I have to be rational."

JC laughed while Joey grinned and asked, "Jup, you think he invented sex or something?"

Justin grinned. "Maybe not invented it, but Josh is completely unique, I’d bet on it."

JC snorted disbelievingly at that but Joey, Chris, and Lance all looked measuringly at him.

"He is flexible from all that yoga shit," Chris said suddenly.

Joey added, "And he can pick _me_ up."

Charlie and Mike both looked surprised at that since Joey wasn’t a little bitty guy by far, and Lance smirked as he finished, "And he’s able to dance us all in the ground if he’s in the mood, which means he’s got serious stamina."

"Okay," Chris said with a grin for Justin, "we conceed. You lucky dog, you."

Mike chuckled then and JC blushed while Justin gave Chris a smug look and said, "Yeah, I am, aren’t I?"

Lance opened his mouth to say something then but heard someone knock on the door and changed whatever he was going to say. "That’s the bellhop I hope, so we’ll be ready to go before too long. You guys ought to put your shoes on." Justin leaned over to pick up his shoes as Lance and JC both stood, Lance going to the door while JC walked over to where his shoes were laying in the floor under the coffee table.

Five minutes later the seven guys were on the way down the hall towards the elevators with Joey, Mike, Justin, and Charlie all carrying tupperware dishes of food, and fifteen minutes later they were in the trucks and on the way out of the parking lot.

 

 

 

It was a few minutes after five o-clock when Justin pulled into a driveway next to Mike and Charlie’s Tracker and then turned off the engine in their truck. "We’re here!" Justin said with a big grin, not at all surprised when he looked into the back seat to see the glimpse of ocean beyond the landscaping around the house already had JC captivated.

Chris snorted as he unbuckled his seatbelt as he replied sarcastically, "Gee, y’think?"

Lance chuckled. "You have asked every two minutes for the last half hour, sweetheart."

Chris turned to stick his tongue out at Lance, then threw open his door and hopped out, grinning at Dre and Scott as they got out of the other Expedition to help unload them both since all of the guys’ junk hadn’t fit in theirs.

Lance, Joey, Justin, and JC all got out too, and JC stared off towards the water with a grin for all of a minute while the others watched him before Justin said, "Josh, go. I’ll carry our stuff in."

JC turned to look at Justin, surprised but happy. "You sure?"

Justin grinned and gave him a gentle shove. "Yes, go! I’ll be out there in a bit."

"Thanks, baby," JC said, then gave Justin a quick kiss on the cheek and a happy grin before he headed off towards the break in the ornamental bushes planted around the house.

Justin watched him go with a smile, but once JC was out of sight he looked back towards the truck to find everyone – even Scott and Dre – watching him with varying grins. "What?!" Justin asked, "Am I turning green or something?"

Joey, Mike, Charlie, and Dre moved to start unloading the cars as Lance chuckled and patted Justin’s shoulder. "No Justin," Lance said with a grin, "you’re just being really sweet."

Justin blushed. "I just want him to go enjoy it while he can, it’ll be too dark to enjoy the beach in an hour or two and he’s been looking forward to it."

Lance smiled. "I know. I’ll help you carry his stuff so you can get done faster, okay?"

"You don’t have to," Justin said with a grin, "we don’t have that much to carry, it’ll only take me two trips if I let y’all carry all the groceries."

Lance chuckled again as Chris said, "We’ll get the other junk, kid. Go find y’all a room where Josh can see the water and then get your ass out there with him."

Justin grinned. "Yes sir." He ran around the truck, laughing as Chris pretended he was going to chase him.

Chris stopped after only a step or two and grinned at Lance as he said, "That boy is such a smartass."

Lance grinned and started towards the back of their truck. "Chris, sweetheart, we know. He got it from you."

"Hey," Chris said, laughing as he followed Lance. "Josh has taught him a lot more than I have!"

Lance grinned. "Yeah, but you’re the one who taught him he’s never gonna be too old to play and it’s never a bad time for a joke or a smart-assed remark."

Chris looked like he might argue for a second as Joey and Lance both watched him, then he grinned. "I was right, too."

Lance laughed and picked up Chris’ suitcase and gym bag to hand them to Chris. "Take these and go find us a room."

Chris took them with a smirk. "Yes sir, daddy Bass, sir."

Lance just laughed again and shoved him towards the house.

 

 

 

By the time Chris was inside, JC was already on the beach carrying his shoes and smiling as he moved through the edge of the water, splashing just a bit and enjoying the wet sand squishing between his toes. He loved the ocean, he could spend days on end on a beach just looking at the surf or listening to the tide come in – had, quite a few times – and going on tour was always tough because he missed it so. Sure, they had visited the beach just a few days ago, but that had been different. JC had known when they got there that it would only be for an hour or two and that it was semi-public, and he hadn’t felt like he could really, truly relax except that too-short time when he and Justin had been laying on the beach listening to music.

JC could relax now though, and he knew it. He had days to enjoy this beach thanks to Lance, so he looked out over the water quite often as he walked, watching the waves or sea birds or passing boats as his mind roamed. JC felt a little guilty for letting Justin do all the carrying but Justin had volunteered and besides, Justin would have been upset if he didn’t let him. He would make it up to Justin later tonight anyway, he was sure.

JC smiled a little wider at that thought, thinking how very lucky he was to have Justin as his best friend, his lover and his partner in a sense few other people could ever have been. Justin knew him almost as well as he knew himself and loved JC with all his heart and soul, so much so that it always showed in the way Justin listened to him, or watched him, or just smiled because they were together. JC marveled at the fact Justin was so special and so perfect, in his eyes at least, and yet he still wanted JC.

JC looked out at the ocean then to watch a pelican dip down after a fish before it flew towards the island in the distance, suddenly envying the bird it’s freedom. JC loved his life, they all loved what they did, but sometimes he wished for time to just be an anonymous person again, if only for a few days. It had been years since he could walk around freely in public without a disguise, and he’d grown to envy people who went shopping when and where they wanted, ate at McDonalds and could drive down the street in their home town without causing a traffic jam.

Most of all, JC envied gay men who didn’t have to hide or disguise themselves, the ones who could do something so simple as wear a t-shirt – Jake had given JC a shirt that said ‘ _Let_ _’_ _s Get One Thing Straight, I_ _’_ _m Not_ ’ that JC positively loved but couldn’t even take on the road because other people did their laundry for them – or even kiss the man they loved in public without causing a riot. JC knew a few gay men outside of the music business, mostly friends of Jake’s, and he’d found he liked them and their company but he still couldn’t risk meeting many because eventually someone would talk.

JC wouldn’t even know Jake if he hadn’t met him by accident one night when Tony got drunk and Jake, who was the bartender at Tony’s favorite club, helped get him home because JC didn’t know the area well enough to find Tony’s house. Jake had driven them both home in Tony’s little car and then helped JC put him to bed, and JC had been just drunk enough to talk to Jake when the other man offered a sympathetic ear.

JC had quickly found out that Jake already knew about him, and with that out of the way they’d just gotten to know each other. The next time JC had visited Tony he’d found out Jake had a new boyfriend, a delicate looking man that JC had been sure was a woman when Tony introduced him as ‘Gina’, mostly because ‘Gina’ looked and acted like a lady as far as JC could tell. JC was let in on the fact his real name was Gary later that evening, and was amazed to learn that Gary was only a year older than Justin not long afterwards. Gary looked at least five years older than that and acted ten years older. He was most definitely an adult who’d been around, not a kid like Justin was.

Unlike Tony, Jake and Gary had never thought it was odd for JC to love Justin and be happy just to be near him, and they’d both understood when JC explained why he had never told Justin he was gay. Jake and Gary had been there for JC a lot over the last few years, especially Jake, and their support had really helped JC through the crap Tony had thrown at him. There had been a lot of times he felt like he couldn’t turn to the other guys, which was stupid, he knew, but he’d still felt that way. Gary and Jake had been there for him every time, taking him into their home and taking care of him.

Jake especially tried to take care of JC and treated him like he was his baby brother even though Jake was only a few years older, and Jake was very protective of JC, especially where Tony was concerned. JC suddenly realized he hadn’t talked to Jake at all in over a month and sighed, looking down at the sand. Jake was one of his closest friends in the world outside the group, but JC didn’t know his phone number or even his email address and would have to find his little address book to even talk to him. JC hadn’t been carrying his cell in weeks, so there was a better than average chance Jake had called him and he hadn’t returned the call, and he felt suddenly guilty about that even though he knew Jake wouldn’t be mad.

JC knew that was messed up but thought it was typical of his life – all five of their lives really – that even their good friends were people they might talk to once or twice a month when they were on tour, if that. It was no wonder that the five of them felt closer to each other than to anyone else in the world. They _were_ closer to each other, physically, mentally and emotionally, all the time.

JC was sure nobody would ever accept and understand him as well as Justin, Chris, Joey, and Lance did, not even Jake and Gary. They were two of his best friends and knew him better than his family or his other friends ever had, yeah, but they didn’t really know what it was like to be part of ‘Nsync. The only ones who knew what they went through day after day were the five of them or possibly the Boys, but the Boys were almost as busy as ‘Nsync and didn’t have any more time to hang out with ‘outsiders’ than ‘Nsync did.

JC moved up to the very edge of the water then and sat down facing the ocean while he thought about all that had happened in the last few days, and how he would explain it to Jake and Gary. He missed them and really wanted to call them and tell them about everything that had happened in the last few days. They would be glad to know JC was truly happy for the first time he could remember, so happy that he felt like he was floating whenever he happened to notice the ring on his finger, and JC loved making them happy.

JC smiled and pulled his knees up to his chest then, folding his arms on top of his knees to look out at the waves and watch the sea birds dipping and swirling over a school of fish as he absently rubbed the underside of his ring with his thumb. He didn’t even notice when he began to sing softly a few minutes later, a soft smile curving his lips moving as he sang softly to himself. " _’_ _I_ _’_ _ve heard all the lines, I_ _’_ _ve cried oh so many times. Those tear drops they won_ _’_ _t fall again, I_ _’_ _m so excited_ _‘_ _cause you_ _’_ _re my best friend. So if you should ever doubt, wonder what love is all about, just think back and remember dear, those words whispered in your ear. I said true love, you_ _’_ _re the one I_ _’_ _m dreaming of, your heart fits me like a glove, and I_ _’_ _m gonna be true blue... Baby, I love you._ ’"

 

 

 

After all the groceries were put away Joey, Charlie, and Mike got started on making supper – burgers with everything and fresh fried shrimp instead of french fries – while Lance finally took a minute to carry his things into the room Chris had picked for them. He walked in and looked around to see it had big bay windows Chris must have opened with a view of the ocean and then he grinned, figuring rightly Justin had grabbed the room with the sliding glass door leading to the deck for him and JC.

Lance put his suitcase and gym bag in the closet where they’d be out of the way and then walked to the open windows, his eyebrows going up when he saw JC was sitting alone about a hundred yards down the beach and staring out at the waves as the water lapped at his bare feet. Lance smiled and stopped to watch him for a little while, completely unaware that Chris had walked down the hall after him.

Chris stood at the door to their room for several minutes watching Lance with a little smile before he finally turned away and disappeared soundlessly back down the hallway to go help Joey. Chris knew Lance was in love with JC and even Justin, but he couldn’t really find it in himself to mind since he wasn’t entirely sure he wasn’t in the same boat. If it ever went anywhere – and Chris had to admit if only to himself that he hoped it would – he was sure it would just bring them all closer together, but even if JC and Justin stayed oblivious he knew Lance would never let it hurt the love and friendship they all felt for each other. Lance was happy just to be with them and was perfectly willing to settle for friendship with the two ex-mice, and if he liked to look at JC, well, Chris did too. JC was what Brit liked to call eyecandy, and Chris had always had a serious weakness for sweets.

Lance stood at the window watching JC for a good five minutes longer before he remembered that Justin had carried JC’s things inside quite a while ago, so there was no reason for him not to be out there with him. They had decided in the truck on the way over that they weren’t going to worry about reporters or rumors as long as they were at the beach house on Pawley’s Island since it was in a closed community that was nearly deserted and they were officially in another state, so Justin didn’t need to stay away from him for appearances. Lance decided to go see what Justin was doing then, sure that if there was anyone in the world JC would want to share the beach with it was Justin.

Lance walked down the hallway to the corner room closest to the ocean, which had it’s door wide open allowing him to see JC and Justin’s things on the bed. Lance walked in quietly, looking around and seeing the door to the deck was open as he called quietly, "Just? You in here?"

"Outside," Justin said just barely loud enough for Lance to hear him.

Lance walked outside to find Justin sitting on the edge of the deck in the fading light of the sunset watching JC, his posture and the way he was dressed almost identical to JC’s right down to the bare feet, and Lance had to smile.

Justin looked over his shoulder at Lance then and gave him a quick smile as he asked quietly, "What’d ya need, Poofu?"

Lance smiled a little wider at that – Justin was the only one who still called him ‘Poofu’ with any regularity – and walked over to sit on the edge of the deck next to Justin and let his legs dangle off the side. Lance looked off down the beach at JC with Justin for a long minute before he asked quietly, still smiling, "Curly, what are you doing up here when Josh is down there?"

Justin gave a little half shrug as he answered softly, "I didn’t want to disturb him, he used to really enjoy just sitting alone at the beach and thinking. I figure he has plenty to think about."

Justin sighed at that, frowning slightly, and Lance put an arm around him. "Jup, don’t start blaming yourself for any of it, if you do I’ll kick your ass."

Justin turned his head to look at Lance, his dark blue eyes serious. "But I could have prevented all the pain he went through if I had listened to Brit. She’s been telling me to tell him how I feel since even before I met you, Poof, and if I had then..." Justin trailed off and looked back down the beach towards JC as he murmured, "Josh didn’t see it, refused to see it until recently, but Tony has treated him badly for a long time and Josh just took it because he felt so guilty. He didn’t know then that I didn’t mind him being with other people – I wouldn’t even mind sharing him now with someone who loved him and treated him right – but he thought that he should be faithful to me because he loves me. He wasn’t, he did like most guys do and had sex when he got the chance, and that bas—"

Justin broke off abruptly, closing his eyes a moment as he visibly controlled himself, then he went on quietly. "He probably won’t ever tell you guys some of what he told me about how it was between him and Tony, shit he put up with because he somehow felt he deserved it. He’s got such a low opinion of himself that he didn’t even notice Tony was just using him until I told him so half a dozen times, and I still don’t think he really believes it."

Lance sighed and squeezed Justin’s shoulders, looking down the beach at JC for a long moment, taking in the way the light of the setting sun made the highlights in his hair seem to glow. "I know he went through hell, and that hearing about it must be as hard on you as if you’d been the one hurt—"

Justin shook his head, still looking at JC as he interrupted in a surprisingly calm, firm tone. "No, if it had been me I could take it a lot easier. No matter what you guys think, I’m not a baby anymore and I don’t need you to protect me. If Tony had tried with me a third of what he did to Josh, I probably would have been in jail by now. Still might wind up there if he ever touches my baby again."

Lance couldn’t help but smile a bit at Justin calling JC his baby, even though he knew Justin was completely serious. Despite how sweet Justin could be, Lance had absolutely no problem picturing Justin beating the crap out of someone who had the gall to upset JC, much less hurt him over and over again like Tony had. Lance knew it was probably all Justin could do not to get visibly mad whenever he heard Tony’s name, and he didn’t even think twice before he told Justin the next thing that went through his head. "I’ve been more proud of you the last few days than I have ever been before, Justin. It’s amazing the way you’re taking care of Josh, and I know that if you just keep doing what you’re doing it’ll all work out."

Justin looked at him in surprise. "What? Why? I haven’t done anything!"

Lance smiled at him and said quietly, "Yes, you have. You’ve accepted all he told you and supported him through all this, helping him see it for what it was and accept it too, and all without you getting bitter or jealous. You’re being so strong for Josh, and somehow you’re saying all the right things, and you’ve made him _happy_ again for the first time in years. You’ve worked a miracle on him, Justin."

Justin stared at Lance for a long minute, then said, "But I’m not really doing anything."

Lance chuckled softly and moved the hand on Justin’s shoulder down to rub his back as he leaned closer to him. "Sweetheart, you are. You listen to him and you accept whatever he tells you, and you’re supporting and loving him enough that you’ve given him confidence in himself again, and that’s something few people could do in your place. I’m very sure I would have a lot of trouble coping with all you are – I don’t even want to _think_ about Josh going through things even worse than what he already told us – and Chris couldn’t do what you’re doing no matter how much he loves Josh because he can’t stand to hear about it if someone he loves has been hurt. I don’t even think Joe could take hearing all you have, and he’s been around a time or three himself."

Justin looked back down the beach towards JC then, thinking about all that Lance had said, and Lance followed his gaze to watch JC too. Lance’s eyebrows went up a moment later when JC turned his head to look at them, smiling as he waved to them.

Lance immediately nudged Justin with a little grin. "Go on, Jup. Looks like he’s ready for company."

"Yeah. Thanks, Poof." Justin gave Lance a smile and then leaned over to kiss him quickly, shocking Lance so much that he was still sitting there staring wide-eyed at where Justin had been well after Justin had started down the beach towards JC.

Lance turned his head to watch Justin trot down the beach after a long moment, and blushed when he saw JC grinning at him. Lance didn’t know what to think about the fact JC wasn’t at all upset, or how Justin’s lips had felt on his, or how he’d smelled like JC and—

Lance looked away then and flushed even hotter, even though nobody was watching him anymore and it wasn’t like they could hear what he was thinking anyway. Lance looked back towards the other two just in time to see Justin pull JC to his feet, and a moment later they were walking down the beach hand in hand. Lance watched them for only a few strides before he decided he’d go help Joey with supper. Talking with the other four guys would give him something to do, and he wouldn’t be tempted to dwell on how Justin’s soft lips had—

Lance groaned and stood, thinking the whole sit-with-Justin-and-watch-JC-in-the-sunset thing had been a bad idea, and went back into the house to go chop onions for their burgers. If crying over a bowl of onions – Lance _always_ cried when he chopped onions, even mild ones – couldn’t keep him from thinking about JC, or Justin, or JC and Justin, then nothing could.

 

 


	48. Chapter 48

 

~~~~48~~~~

 

Justin had kissed Lance purely on impulse, but the look of complete shock on Lance’s face made him think he’d have to do that more often. Lance was seldom surprised by anything Justin did or said – or at least it seemed that way to Justin – and he was very tired of being predictable. He couldn’t remember the last time he had managed to surprise Lance so completely, and Justin trotted down the beach towards JC with a grin on his face, wondering how hard it would be to get JC to help him corner Lance so he could surprise him again.

JC had finally figured out the other day that Lance was in love with him, and he and Justin had talked about it that night. Justin had urged JC to do whatever he felt like doing with Lance, but at first JC had insisted that it would be wrong. JC had made it plain he wasn’t in love with Lance like he was with Justin, but he did love him and he wanted Lance happy, and if it would make Lance happy to flirt with him or see a bit of skin JC had decided he wasn’t going to fight it. Then JC had said Justin could do whatever he wanted to with the other guys and JC wouldn’t mind a bit, but – and it was a big but – JC had a ring on his finger and he wasn’t touching anyone else, no matter how much fun he thought it could be or how happy it would make them.

Justin had snorted then and shown JC his ring and told him that the fact the mate to it was on JC’s hand made him the happiest man in the world, and that if JC thought it was wrong for JC to kiss their very best friends – who had nearly identical rings in their fingers – then Justin wasn’t doing it either. Justin went on to tell him that there weren’t going to be any double standards for them and he wasn’t going to listen when JC told him to do something JC had admitted he wouldn’t do because he thought it was wrong. JC loved Justin enough he’d not mind anything Justin did, and Justin had finally realized that and was determined not to take advantage of it anymore.

JC had thought about that a few minutes as they laid there in the dark, then said kissing them was okay, he’d do that when it felt right, but that Justin was the only man who would be in his bed.

Justin had chuckled then and said that wouldn’t bother him a bit since he would be there every night and sort of liked to stretch out, and JC had laughed out loud and then started kissing him, effectively ending the conversation. They seemed to end a lot of their conversations like that, but Justin definitely wasn’t going to be complaining any time soon.

Justin pulled himself out of his reverie as he reached JC and grinned down at him. "Hey babe, you been enjoying yourself?"

JC chuckled and lifted a hand towards Justin, wordlessly asking for a hand up. "Yeah baby, but not as much as you. What’d Lance say that made you decide to kiss him? He was blushing so red I could see it from here!"

Justin pulled JC to his feet, not letting go of his hand when JC was upright. "We were talking and he said something really sweet." Justin gave JC a quick kiss and then went on with a big grin, "You gotta help me surprise him like that again, babe. The look on his face was priceless. He’d probably blush to his _toes_ if you kissed him."

JC chuckled and turned to start down the beach, tugging Justin along by the hand. "I will, if you’ll help with Chris when it’s his turn."

Justin smirked and squeezed JC’s hand. "Deal." They walked in silence for a moment before Justin suddenly said, "Scoop isn’t gonna know what hit him."

JC chuckled and swayed closer to Justin so their shoulders touched and their clasped hands brushed their thighs as they walked, their long shadows stretching out in front of them on the beach. "You’re something else, baby," JC said after a moment, smiling at Justin. "You’ve got such a generous heart."

"What makes you say that?" Justin asked, surprised.

JC smiled a little wider. "You love me more than anything, but you’d still willingly share me with anyone if you thought it would make me happy."

Justin gave him a crooked little grin. "Sure I would, in a heartbeat. If that makes me generous then you are too, y’know."

JC chuckled softly. "No baby, I’m not. If any other man tried to touch you, I’d out myself so fast it wouldn’t even be funny, right before I decked him."

"But you said the other night you wanted me to play with the other guys if I felt like it," Justin said, confused and thinking that maybe he’d misunderstood JC before. He hoped not, the thought he might have done anything JC didn’t want him to – even though he didn’t seem to mind Justin had kissed Lance – was enough to make his brow furrow slightly.

JC looked surprised, then laughed. "Oh baby, no. I meant if a stranger touched you, not the guys. I’d share almost anything with them if it made you happy. They all love you and understand you, and wouldn’t hurt you or let it go too far."

Justin looked relieved. "Okay, I was lost there for a minute."

JC gave him a slow, wicked grin. "So baby, what is it you have planned for Lance?"

Justin grinned. "I dunno, that’s why I wanted your help. What do you think?"

JC thought for a moment as they walked, then said, "Well, I don’t think Chris or Joe would mind, but I want a minute to talk to them before we do anything more than kiss him, okay?"

Justin nodded. "Yeah, that’s a good idea. I know Chris will be all for it – I don’t think he was joking Friday when he suggested an orgy – but I’d like to know Joe is cool with it."

JC made a face. "There will be _no_ orgies."

Justin laughed. "What’s wrong, babe? Aren’t you curious?"

JC snorted. "Nope. I’m up for kissing, maybe even fooling around a little, but not sex with them. I have you, I don’t need or want three other guys in my bed." Justin smirked at that and didn’t say anything, and after glancing at him JC asked, "Okay you, why do you look so damned smug?"

"Because you just said I’m as good as three other guys in bed," Justin replied, his smirk growing even more smug.

JC laughed. "No, I said you’re _better_. I had no idea that sex could be like it is with you, baby, you’re amazing."

Justin blushed but his smirk didn’t really fade that much as he looked at JC and said, "I’m lucky, I learned from the best."

JC chuckled, his own cheeks going a little pink. "And he’s the luckiest guy alive to have the privilege of teaching you."

Justin smiled at him and let go of JC’s hand to put his arm around him instead, pulling JC close against his side as they continued walking slowly down the beach.

 

 

 

Lance was still blushing just a bit when he reached the kitchen, making Chris give him a curious look from his seat on the counter where he’d been watching Joey start to make the burgers. Mike and Charlie were sitting at the kitchen table cleaning the fresh shrimp they’d bought on the way over with the efficiency of long practice, pinching off the heads and peeling back the shells, then running an odd looking red pick thing along the spine to clean out the groove there before they swished them in a bowl of water and then tossed the shrimp into a bowl with some ice to keep them as cold as possible until they were all clean.

"Hey babe," Chris said, smiling at Lance. "Whatcha doin’?"

"Fixing to start cutting veggies for our burgers," Lance said, smiling but not really looking at Chris as he went to open the fridge. "I was out on the deck with Jup, watching Josh stare at the water. Justin needed somebody to talk to and I had a few minutes, so..." Lance shrugged, pulling the bag of onions out of the fridge as he finally looked at Chris with a little grin. "What have you been doing?"

"Watchin’," Chris answered immediately, grinning.

Lance chuckled and put the onions on the table, then walked over to start checking drawers and looking for a knife. "Why aren’t you helping? You could tear up some lettuce or something if nothing else."

Joey grinned. "That drawer’s the one you want," gesturing to the one Chris’ legs were dangling across.

Lance chuckled and leaned up to give Joey a quick kiss on the cheek. "Shoulda known. Thanks, sweetheart."

"No problem." Joey grinned and went back to mixing breadcrumbs and a mixture of half a dozen herbs and spices into the chili meat he’d bought for the hamburgers. Joey’s burgers were almost as good as his lasagna was, even if he did make them out of what JC insisted was a meatloaf recipe.

Lance walked over to where Chris was and gave him a wicked little grin. "Okay you, spread’em, I want in there."

Charlie and Mike both looked up in surprise at that, Charlie blushing almost as red as his hair and hoping Lance hadn’t meant what that sounded like. They’d never have the shrimp ready when the burgers were if they didn’t keep at it so Charlie really shouldn’t leave the kitchen, but he was _not_ staying if Lance and Chris were going to play like that. He was trying to get over his shyness, sure, but staying in the same room with anyone while they had sex was just too much.

Chris grinned at Lance and scooted a bit closer to the edge of the counter, reaching to grab Lance’s shirt and pull him in close as he did as he’d been told, but not far enough to let Lance open the drawer. "Anything you want, baby, but isn’t sex in the kitchen while Joe cooks for us just a little kinky?"

Joey chuckled softly at that and Lance laughed, then rested his hands on Chris’ bare knees as he said, "Sweetheart, there’s not a lot that’s too kinky for me."

Lance moved his hands up to Chris’ chest then and pulled him down by his shirt as Lance leaned up to kiss him, not at all surprised when Chris responded warmly. Lance let go of Chris’ shirt without breaking the kiss and let his hands slide slowly downwards while Joey and Mike both watched, grinning, and Charlie looked studiously at the shrimp he was peeling as he wished the others weren’t quite so shameless.

Chris made a soft noise when Lance’s hands reached his waist and slid lower, and when Lance urged his legs further apart Chris responded quickly, definitely liking where this was going. Lance stroked up the inside of Chris’ thighs under the edge of his jean shorts for a moment and then suddenly stepped back, pulling the drawer between Chris’ knees open as Chris stared at him wide-eyed, very obviously horny and confused.

"Baby, what are you doing?" Chris asked as he watched Lance dig through the silverware drawer until he found a paring knife, both of them ignoring Joey’s chuckling.

"Getting a knife," Lance said with an innocent grin, looking up at Chris. "What did you think I was going to do?"

Chris made a little annoyed noise and said indignantly, "Well, when you started feeling me up I thought you might want to do _me_!"

Lance grinned and closed the drawer. "But I’ve got things to do right now, sweetheart."

Chris snorted and hopped off the counter to stand in front of Lance, his shorts loose enough that at least he wasn’t too uncomfortable once he stood up. "Yeah," he said, "you do have things to do. Me! Like, right now."

Mike and Joey both laughed as Lance reached to put the knife down on the counter, not wanting Chris to accidentally cut himself if he started playing around. "I need to get started cutting up those onions, and the tomatoes, and the--"

"I’ll help after you do me, okay?" Chris interrupted with a little grin as he stepped closer to Lance and reached for his waist, thinking that putting down the knife was a good sign.

Lance pursed his lips and pretended to think, then said, "I guess that could work. But we’re not gonna play around for an hour, understand?"

Chris grinned and gave Lance a quick kiss, then grabbed Lance’s hand and started dragging him out of the room. "Joe, don’t start cooking the burgers till we get back, okay?"

Joey laughed and started cleaning the hamburger mixture off his hands. "I won’t, just don’t take forever."

Lance and Chris disappeared down the hallway as Chris called over his shoulder, "It won’t take long, I promise."

Joey laughed and moved to the sink to wash his hands, shaking his head as he said, "Well, at least we had lunch late."

Mike chuckled. "I gather we’ll be having meals at odd times a lot, so why should today be different?"

"It won’t be." Joey grinned at Mike as he picked up the bowl of hamburger and then carried it over to stick it in the fridge and pull out a bag of tomatoes and a head of lettuce to put them on the table with the onions. Joey went to one of the cabinets and pulled out two bowls, then grabbed the knife Lance had put on the counter and walked over to sit down.

"You’re not going to wait and let them do it?" Charlie asked, surprised.

Joey gave Charlie a quick wicked grin and began unwrapping the lettuce. "That’s what I’m doing, Charlie. Cuttin’ up fixins for our burgers while they do it."

Charlie turned bright red again as Mike laughed and said, "You walked right into that one!"

Charlie made a face at Mike. "I didn’t think I had to worry about Joey being like that."

Joey smirked and began to tear up the lettuce. "Dude, this Joe is definitely like that. I don’t say things as often as the others do because I can’t get a word in edgewise, not because I don’t think of them. Chris has always loved to tease people – if he never teases someone, it’s a good bet he doesn’t like them – and Lance has gotten almost as bad over the last year or two. Josh is as sweet as they come, but even he’s got a quirky sense of humor and might fling out a zinger at any time. Justin’s really your safest bet, but he’ll get you every once in a while just to prove he can."

Charlie gave Joey a wry grin. "I guess I should just always expect it then, and be pleasantly surprised if you guys behave, huh?"

"Well, if you do we won’t be surprising you much," Joey replied with a chuckle. "We’ve all been avoiding the subject for so long that you’re probably gonna to hear us talkin’ sex more than you would just about anywhere else. We didn’t just realize we love each other, or even that we want each other, but we did just finally _admit it_ to each other. Now we can talk about it, and you can bet we will for a while."

Joey opened the bag of tomatoes and took one out to begin efficiently slicing it into a bowl while the other two peeled shrimp. They worked quietly for about five minutes before Mike suddenly asked, "Does it bother you that they didn’t ask you to go, too?"

Charlie rolled his eyes and gave Mike a dirty look. "Mike, you are so _nosy_!"

Joey chuckled. "I don’t mind. And no, it doesn’t bother me, I know they love me and they’ll make it up to me later. Lance and Chris haven’t really had any time alone, and I think they should. Lance has wanted Chris for a long, long time and had to hide it, so he’ll enjoy the chance to show Chris just how he feels." Joey paused a moment, getting another tomato, then went on, "Chris is still a little in awe of the fact Lance thinks he’s gorgeous, and he doesn’t quite believe it. Lance needs a chance to prove it to him." Joey gave Mike a quick smile and kept cutting up tomatoes.

Charlie surprised Mike and Joey both when he asked, "Why don’t you feel like you have to prove to them how you feel? Or do you?"

Joey stopped cutting the tomato he held and looked thoughtfully at Charlie for a moment before he answered. "Well, no, I don’t think I need to prove it to them, really. They both know how I feel, and that there’s only two other people in the world I love even almost as much as I love them."

Mike said, "JC and Justin."

"Yeah," Joey said with a little grin, and then chuckled. "If you know them you can’t help but fall for our beautiful dreamer and his clueless baby."

Charlie chuckled as Mike grinned at Joey and said incredulously, "A twenty year old baby?!"

Joey snorted and started slicing tomatoes again, smiling. "Yeah, he’s twenty, but he’s still a kid. We’ve kept him an innocent almost, and a lot longer than we really should have because he’s the baby. I mean, we all love him too much to want to see him hurt, but part of growing up is learning to accept that life’s gonna kick you in the balls every once in a while. Jup’s never had to learn that."

Charlie nodded. "I’d noticed that he seems pretty sheltered."

"Try as completely sheltered as we could keep him," Joey corrected with a little grin that faded as he went on more quietly, "I wish we could have kept Josh a bit more sheltered..." Joey trailed off and then shook his head with a sigh and reached for another tomato.

Mike and Charlie didn’t know what to say to that, so they both started peeling shrimp again.

 

 

 

JC and Justin started back down the beach towards the house just after full dark, both of them quiet as they listened to the ocean and looked occasionally out over the waves until JC suddenly said, "This is almost perfect."

Justin smiled and looked at him as they walked, asking, "What’s keeping it from being perfect?"

"Well, for one thing," JC replied with a smile, "we’re walking."

Justin chuckled and pulled JC to a stop, turning him into his arms. "That better?"

JC nodded, grinning a bit as he rested his hands on Justin’s waist. “But it’s still not perfect."

Justin waited patiently for a moment, smiling, and then asked, "Well? How do I make it perfect?"

"Well, to be perfect we’d not have these in our way," JC lifted a hand and plucked at Justin’s shirt with a wicked little grin, "and we’d be getting all sandy and wet ‘cause we’d be rolling around on the ground."

"Oooh, sex on the beach! It’s not just a drink anymore!" Justin said in a perky, girly voice, making JC laugh as Justin smirked and went on. "I like that idea. We’ll just have to see what we can do about making this the perfect evening."

JC grinned. "Shouldn’t be too hard— Well, okay, so maybe that wasn’t the right choice of words."

Justin just laughed and took his hands off of JC’s hips to grab the lower edge of his own t-shirt, pulling it up and off in one smooth motion before he dropped it at their feet and leaned forward to kiss JC, sliding his hands around JC’s slim waist again to pull him closer. Justin moved his hands up under the hem of JC’s shirt after a moment as he began to slowly lick and nibble his way down JC’s neck, leaving a damp trail that made JC shiver when the night breeze hit it. JC slid his fingers through Justin’s curls, closing his eyes with a smile and just enjoying the sensations Justin was causing until Justin suddenly pulled his t-shirt up and off as well, leaving Justin in just his khaki shorts and JC in nothing but a pair of low-slung jeans.

Justin kissed him again then and began to slowly explore JC’s mouth with his tongue while his hands roamed across JC’s back, fingers slipping inside JC’s waistband more than once. After a few minutes he changed tactics and abruptly ducked his head to nibble gently at the mark he’d left on JC’s collarbone that morning, then he began kissing his way down JC’s body, one hand on the small of JC’s back holding him close while the other hand slid purposefully down over his ass. JC moaned softly and arched his back, moving closer to Justin as his hands tightened in Justin’s hair, guiding his head lower as Justin’s hand moved further down JC’s ass to slide between his thighs. Justin gently nibbled at a nipple then, stroking JC through the material of his jeans and making JC gasp and hold on to his shoulders as his knees tried to buckle.

"God, baby," JC whispered huskily, his blue eyes looking a bit glazed as he looked down at him. "Quit teasing me."

Justin lifted his head to give JC a quick grin, sliding his hand up from between JC’s thighs to slowly stroke his ass instead. "Is that what I was doing?"

JC laughed softly, sounding out of breath, and moved his hands to the waistband of Justin’s shorts to unfasten the button as he looked into Justin’s eyes with a little grin. "Oh yes. Teasing me something _awful_."

JC figured he’d better get the shorts out of his way while Justin was talking since he knew he’d be too distracted once Justin’s attention went back to other things. Justin was quite capable of playing JC like a piano and loved to prove it every chance he got, whether it was by nibbling the little spot on JC’s neck that infallibly made him squirm and giggle or running those big hands of his over JC’s body and turning JC into a puddle of very happy goo. Of course, JC wasn’t about to complain.

Justin grinned a little wider and leaned in to nibble JC’s shoulder as he pulled him closer, but after a moment JC’s hand slid inside his now-open shorts and he shuddered, lifting his head with a little growly noise so that his lips were by JC’s ear as he said, "If this is the kind of response I get, I’ll have to try and tease you more often."

JC chuckled softly and turned his head to nuzzle Justin’s ear since it was so conveniently close. "You don’t have to try to make me want you, baby," he whispered, his lips brushing Justin’s earlobe, "just breathe."

Justin smiled and pulled his head back enough to see JC’s face then, and he just barely had time to recognize JC’s grin before JC kissed him and two pairs of blue eyes drifted shut.

 

 


	49. Chapter 49

 

~~~~49~~~~

 

Chris dragged Lance down the hall and into their room, flipping on the light and pulling Lance inside before he turned to lock the door. Lance watched him with a little grin from a few feet away, waiting to see where Chris wanted this to go before he did anything. He was fully expecting Chris to push him to the bed or maybe just against a convenient wall before he started the serious work of getting Lance naked so Chris could drive him crazy.

Lance would never have thought Chris was the type, but he loved the way Chris would concentrate completely on how much his partner – or partners – enjoyed something and ignored everything else, including his own pleasure. It had amazed Lance to see that at first, wondering if Chris just didn’t feel the need as sharply as he and Joey did, but he’d soon realized that Chris felt it even more strongly, he just happened to get more pleasure from driving them crazy.

Chris saw Lance watching him then and leaned back against the door with a wicked little grin, his brown eyes dancing with mischief. "Baby, what are you doing?"

Lance grinned and shrugged. "I dunno yet."

Chris laughed and pushed off from the door, moving over to Lance and slipping his arms around Lance’s waist. "Well, I know why _I_ _’_ _m_ here."

Lance’s grin widened just a bit as he draped his arms loosely around Chris’ neck. "Yeah? Why’s that?"

"‘Cause my baby boy said he’s gonna do me, and he’d never ever lie to me," Chris replied, smirking at him.

"Oh he did, huh?" Lance asked, his green eyes sparkling. "Is that what you wanted?"

Chris nodded enthusiastically. "Uh-huh," he said, then suddenly gave Lance a quick kiss and pulled away to walk over towards the bed, taking off his t-shirt and pitching it in the general direction of the dresser as he moved.

Lance chuckled and moved after him as he asked, "Are you in that big of a hurry?"

Chris paused thoughtfully with his hands on either side of the button on his jean shorts for all of five seconds before he grinned over his shoulder at Lance and said, "No," then finished unfastening them.

Lance laughed and walked up behind Chris before he could kick free of the shorts around his ankles, putting a hand on each side of Chris’ waist as he kissed the back of his neck. Lance grinned when Chris leaned back against him and tipped his head to one side, an invitation Lance immediately took as he began nibbling his way up Chris’ neck. Lance knew Chris didn’t really have the patience to just lay back and let someone else take over very often, and if he was offering to now Lance was definitely not going to argue.

Chris moved his feet after a moment to kick the shorts the rest of the way off and then turned to face Lance, his brown eyes dark as he smiled at him. "You’re wearing way too many clothes, baby."

Lance chuckled softly and took a slow visual tour of Chris’ mostly naked body before he lifted his eyes to meet Chris’ again. "So are you."

Chris laughed and reached for the waist of Lance’s jeans. "But not as many as you, so you get to get naked first."

"Okay," Lance said with a shrug, still grinning, and started to take his t-shirt off.

Chris unzipped Lance’s pants and then grabbed the waistband of his jeans and underwear to pull down both at once, leaning forward to lick at the soft, pale skin of Lance’s thigh and earning a soft gasp. Chris straightened back up with a little smirk then, sliding his hands up the backs of Lance’s thighs and then over his ass as he looked into Lance’s eyes. "All better."

Lance snorted. "Nope, not quite..." He put his hands on Chris’ shoulders then and shoved, pushing Chris to his back on the bed and then leaning over him as he smirked down at him.

"You are such a dom," Chris said after a second, grinning even though he looked a little surprised.

Lance grinned back at him and reached for the waistband of Chris’ boxers. "And you love it, so don’t even try to complain."

Chris laughed and lifted up a bit for Lance to tug them off, then scooted up the bed as he watched Lance. "Happy now?"

Lance gave him a wicked grin and climbed on the bed, moving over Chris as he said, "Yep, and you’re gonna be too in just a minute."

"Oooh," Chris replied with a smirk as he looked up into Lance’s eyes, slowly running his hands over Lance’s chest. "Lucky, lucky m—"

Lance cut him off with a kiss.

 

 

 

Charlie, Mike, and Joey looked up from the shrimp they were butterflying – they had cleaned them all and cut up the tomatoes, onions, and lettuce already – when they heard the kitchen door open, then laughed when they saw the two who walked in.

JC and Justin both gave them sheepish grins, knowing they must be a sight in their soaked clothes that still had sand clinging to them. "We’d have come in through our room,” Justin said, “but the door wouldn’t open. I think it must have gotten locked somehow when Lance closed it earlier."

Joey grinned. "What have you two been doing?"

JC and Justin looked at each other and then at Joey as JC grinned and asked, "What does it look like, Joe?"

Joey’s grin widened just a little. "Well, it looks to me like, among other things, you proved yet again that you can’t walk on any beach without getting soaked to the skin."

Justin laughed and JC gave him a gentle shove towards the hallway as he said, "Getting wet was fun, but finding out that our clothes were soaked too was annoying." Charlie blushed at that, glad the beach was a private one at least.

Justin let JC push him around the corner into the hall as he called over his shoulder, "Yeah man, putting on wet jeans is no fun."

Mike and Joey exchanged a grin at that while JC snorted and said, "I don’t wanna hear it, baby, at least you have underwear on."

Joey and Mike both started laughing as JC ushered Justin down the hall into their room and shut the door.

 

 

 

Chris listened to the voices in the hallway until it was quiet, and then lifted his head off Lance’s chest to smirk at him. "Did I just hear what I thought I did?"

Lance chuckled, rubbing Chris’ back with one hand. "Depends on what you thought you heard, sweetheart."

"Did Josh really just say he wasn’t wearing any underwear?" Chris asked as he lifted himself up on one elbow and looked down at Lance.

Lance grinned and folded one arm behind his head. "Sounded that way to me."

Chris grinned. "And that he wasn’t wearing his clothes when they got wet."

Lance nodded, his grin widening a bit. "Yeah, that’s what I heard too."

"We have _got_ to spend the day on the beach with Josh and Jup this week, babe," Chris said with a smirk, "Maybe he’ll do it again."

Lance smirked too. "Or maybe we’ll follow their example."

Chris laughed and leaned down to give Lance a quick kiss before he rolled away and got up to get dressed. "Have I mentioned that I love the way you think?"

Lance rolled to his side and propped himself up on one elbow to watch Chris look for his underwear, in no hurry to get dressed. "You might have mentioned that, yeah."

Chris looked back towards the bed then and paused, giving Lance a slow once over. "Damn baby, you’re gorgeous."

Lance blushed and looked down at the bed, smiling. "I’m glad you think so."

Chris snorted and walked over to climb back on the bed. "No ‘think’ to it, baby." He crawled over Lance and pushed him to his back, grinning down at him as he said, "I _know_ that every beautiful inch of you, from that spiky bottle-blond hair to the tips of your well-manicured toes, is gorgeous." Chris leaned down to kiss Lance as Lance’s arms came up around his neck, and after several minutes he pulled back to smile down at him and say, "I’m one of the luckiest guys alive."

Lance’s blush hadn’t really faded that much but he still smiled up at Chris as he said softly, "Thank you."

Chris chuckled and kissed him again more quickly, then pulled away and got off the bed again. "No reason to thank me, baby, just telling the truth. Now what’d you do with my boxers?"

Lance rolled to his side again and watched Chris start looking around as he grinned and said, "I pitched them."

Chris snorted and moved to the end of the bed to look on the floor there. "Yeah, I think I knew that. _Where_ did you pitch them?"

Lance shrugged, his grin widening. "Away?"

Chris gave him a dirty look and put his hands on his hips. "You think you’re funny, don’t you?"

Lance laughed and sat up, scooting to the edge of the bed. "You always think it’s funny when you throw _my_ clothes." Lance bent then to pick up his clothes and start getting dressed, sure that he would wind up finding Chris’ underwear for him.

"Well yeah," Chris said letting his hands drop from his hips, "but then I don’t have to find them."

Lance laughed and stood to pull his jeans and underwear up as he said, "If you hate the idea of looking for them that much you could always go without, it’s not like we’re going to be dancing this evening or anything."

Chris cocked his head to one side, and then grinned. "Great idea! One less thing to get rid of when we come back to bed."

Lance chuckled and walked over to pick up his shirt and put it on as Chris started getting dressed, then looked around, wondering where Chris’ underwear had landed. He hadn’t thrown them far, or at least he hadn’t thought he did. Lance shrugged and left the room, sure they’d turn up. It wasn’t like they got up and walked off or something, so they had to be in there somewhere.

Lance walked the short distance down the hall and into the kitchen and walked over to stand next to where Joey – who was alone now – was sitting, and then looked at the bowls of lettuce, tomato, and onion on the table. "Joe, you didn’t have to do all the work, I told you we’d help."

Joey chuckled and scooted his chair back before he reached for Lance, easily pulling him down to sit sideways across his lap. "You are gonna help, babe," Joey told him with a grin. "You get to cook."

Lance laughed and then slid an arm around Joey’s neck. "You sure you want me and Chris cooking your burgers?"

Joey grinned. "I didn’t say anything about letting _Chris_ near the burgers, I’m not stup—"

"Hey!" Chris said from the doorway, sounding half amused, half indignant. "I can cook a _burger_ , Joe." Chris walked around the room to stand next to Joey behind Lance. "it’s not like it’s difficult!"

Joey looked up at Chris and grinned. "Of course it’s not, but you’d probably get bored and either quit watching them or take them off half done and we both know it."

Chris frowned at him a moment before he finally laughed. "Okay, so I don’t have much patience. You love me anyway."

Lance and Joey both laughed and nodded, then Lance patted Joey’s arm. "Lemme up, Joe, and I’ll get started."

"It can wait. Mike and Charlie went to that little store we saw on the way here to get a few things, and Josh and Jup are probably in the shower so there’s no real hurry," Joey said as he slid a hand up the outside of Lance’s thigh.

Chris smirked. "Looks like Joeybear missed you."

Lance grinned at Joey. "Did you?"

Joey returned the grin, still running his hand up and down Lance’s thigh as he said, "I always miss you when you’re not with me, babe, you know that."

Lance shifted in his lap and then asked, "What about Chris, didn’t you miss him too?"

"Oh yeah," Joey said, grinning up at Chris, "but you got here first."

Lance laughed and tipped his head back to look up at Chris. "Maybe if you kiss him he’ll let me up."

Chris grinned and said, "I’ll give it a try." He leaned down to kiss Joey, resting one hand on Lance’s shoulder and the other on the back of Joey’s neck.

Lance watched them with a little smirk, not missing the way Joey’s hands tightened on his thigh and waist or how Joey shifted after a minute to get more comfortable. Lance smirked and squirmed around a bit then just to be annoying, and Joey made a little growly noise, pulling away from Chris to give Lance a dirty look. "You don’t play fair."

Chris grinned and wondered exactly what Lance had done while Lance gave Joey an innocent look. "What?! I’m just trying to get comfortable."

Lance wriggled again and Chris laughed when Joeygrowled again, this time lifting Lance to his feet. "Stop that! You already got laid, but I have to wait until after supper."

Lance grinned. "Well, you can if you want but I don’t see why, myself. You already said I had to cook, and you did everything else, so you and Chris really have nothing to do for the next thirty minutes or so."

Joey looked surprised, then looked hopefully up at Chris, who laughed and started out of the kitchen. "C’mon Joe, you know I’m always willin’."

Joey grinned and stood, pausing to give Lance a quick kiss before he followed Chris out of the room.

Lance chuckled and walked over to the refrigerator to take out the hamburger, then carried it over to put the bowl on the counter and went to find a plate. He was soon standing at the counter forming patties and then putting them on the plate, and after a few minutes he began to sing softly to himself.

JC and Justin stepped out of their room not long after that, both dressed in t-shirts and sweats, and walked down the hallway, exchanging a surprised look as they paused in the doorway to the kitchen to listen. JC recognized the song after a moment as being one by Mary-Chapin Carpenter, someone he hadn’t even known Lance even liked, much less liked enough to actually sing her songs. Lance seldom sang alone unless they asked him to, so to hear him sing a love song without the rest of them or even any music to hide his voice was a completely unexpected treat.

JC and Justin listened and watched Lance sway slightly in time to the song as his smooth, deep voice sang softly, " _’_ _Show a little passion baby, show a little style. Show the knack for knowing when and the gift for knowing how. And have a little trust in us, when fear obscures the path. You know we got this far, darlin_ _’_ _not by luck, but by never turning back. Some will call on destiny, but I just call on faith, that the world won_ _’_ _t stop and actions speak louder... Listen to your heart, to what your heart might say: everything you got, you got the ha_ _—‘_ "

Lance broke off then as the kitchen door opened, and JC and Justin continued into the kitchen and sat down at the table as Mike walked in the back door carrying a paper bag in one arm with the fingers of his other hand hooked into the handles of two cases of Mountain Dew, followed by Charlie with a case of Dr. Pepper and one of Pepsi.

"Hey guys," Lance said with a grin, "just set that stuff over here and I’ll put it up."

Mike grinned and walked over to put the paper bag on the counter, then carried the drinks he’d brought in over to the fridge as he said, "I’ll put the drinks away, boss. You’ll be busy enough cooking."

Charlie nodded as he put both cases he was carrying down next Mike’s feet, then gave Lance a grin as he moved to sit down at the table. "Yeah, and let me know when you’re ready for me to start the shrimp... It’ll take about fifteen minutes to cook them all."

Lance chuckled, nodding. "I will, but it’ll take a while to cook this many burgers."

"What’d we forget at the store?" JC asked, smiling at Charlie.

The seven of them had ducked into a nearly deserted little out-of-the-way supermarket on the way out to Pawley’s and wound up with a whole cart full of groceries, and that was before they added stuff for supper. Chris had followed Lance – who actually went in there with a purpose – around the store making snarky comments about products and tossing things in the cart seemingly at random while JC, Joey, and Justin followed them and called suggestions to him as to what they needed next. After a while Chris got bored with grocery shopping and he, JC, and Justin started playing in the isles and dancing to the oldies music playing over the store’s speakers.

Lance left them with the buggy in the cereal aisle to pick out a few boxes for breakfast the next morning while he went to get the lettuce, tomato, and onions for their burgers, and when he got back they were playing football with a rather battered box of Mueslix. Lance tried unsuccessfully after that to control them and make them behave, until he finally got exasperated and scolded them like little kids, telling them they had to stop right now or go to the truck. They all went on their best behavior then and fell in behind Lance with bemused expressions as he headed for the checkout, and Charlie and Mike had followed the five of them wondering if they were always like that in public.

By the time they had paid and got out of there, the store security guard was giving them dirty looks and the woman at the checkout was decidedly unfriendly, muttering under her breath about teenagers. Lance had to really make an effort not to laugh at that, sure the woman would have been shocked to know the rowdiest ‘teenager’ was thirty years old, going on twelve.

Charlie grinned at JC and said, "Well, we didn’t get oil to fry the shrimp in, or drinks, or nearly enough bacon, or any ketchup, or mustard, or mayonaise."

Lance laughed. "I knew we’d forgotten a few things..."

"Did we remember the thousand island?" Justin asked, looking questioningly from Charlie to Lance and back.

JC grinned and waited for an answer too, hoping they’d gotten it. If they hadn’t, he knew he and Justin were about to make a quick trip to the store. Justin and Chris used thousand island dressing like it was ketchup, a hold over from a summer in Chris’ misspent youth as a fry cook at McDonalds.

Charlie looked a little confused and opened his mouth to say something just as Lance said, "Yeah Jup, we got the thousand island, I remember when Chris put it in the buggy." Lance chuckled and then added, "I think he even got two bottles."

"There’s three then, Joey had us get some, too," Mike said, laughing.

"What are you guys going to do with that much salad dressing?" Charlie asked, looking, lost, then his eyes went a little wide. "Never mind, I don’t think I want to know."

Justin and Lance both started laughing as JC grinned at Charlie and said, "We’re not _that_ kinky. Chris worked at McDonalds one summer when he was a kid, and he got into the habit of putting their ‘special sauce’ on everything. Justin’s mom heard him complain about not being able to get it anymore one time and she put a bottle of salad dressing on the table and said to try it." JC grinned. "Chris did and was thrilled that it’s pretty much the same stuff, and then Justin had to try it ‘cause Chris had raved over it so much. I think they’re both more than a little nuts to tell the truth."

Justin chuckled and lightly shoved JC’s shoulder. "Babe, it’s good!"

Lance grinned and looked over his shoulder at Justin. "Maybe so, but you’re still nuts." He moved over to the cabinet to get down two skillets to cook the burgers in.

JC, Charlie, and Mike all laughed as Justin jumped up, giving JC a wink and a wicked grin. He waited until Lance sat the skillets on the stove and moved over into the corner to get a spatula out of the jar of utensils before he quickly walked over behind him and started tickling him, making Lance yelp and then start giggling as he turned around and tried to fend Justin off.

"Justin!" Lance shrieked between fits of giggles, "Please!" Lance couldn’t get away past Justin, who was grinning and tickling him mercilessly, and Lance was giggling too hard to try and retaliate so he was pretty much left on Justin’s not-so-tender mercies.

Mike closed the fridge with a grin and watched the two of them, not at all surprised that JC seemed to be enjoying watching Justin tease Lance just as much as Justin enjoyed doing it, while Charlie tried not to laugh and wondered what had gotten into Justin.

"Please what?" Justin asked, smirking as he reached around Lance’s arm to tickle behind it, using his longer reach and superior height to full advantage.

Lance was giggling so hard he had tears in his eyes, leaning back against the counter to try and stay on his feet as he finally managed to gasp, "Stop!"

Justin stopped immediately, trying to look innocent. "Oh, is that what you wanted? Why didn’t you say that the first time?"

JC, Mike, and Charlie all laughed, none of them believing the innocent look any more than Lance did, while Lance stared at Justin still giggling a bit and said, "You’re being a very bad boy today, Justin."

Justin smirked, not moving from where he stood very close to Lance, blocking him into the corner. "Oh no, I’m _good_. You wouldn’t know that though."

Lance actually blushed. "Go tease Josh, he can at least play too."

JC grinned. "Why can’t you?"

Mike, Charlie, and Lance all stared at him in shock for a moment before Lance asked, "You _want_ me to play with him?!"

JC just grinned and stood, walking over to stand by Justin. "I know you won’t let it go too far. I trust you both." JC stepped past Justin then to lean in close to Lance and give him a little grin as he said softly, "Besides, I might wanna try it sometime too." JC gave Lance a quick kiss on the cheek and then turned and walked towards the hallway. "I’ll be back in a minute, okay baby?"

"Sure babe, we’ll be here." Justin grinned and watched him go, then looked back at Lance expectantly, waiting for him to say something.

Lance stared after JC, then looked up into Justin’s amused eyes for a long moment before he gave him a smile. "Lemme by, please? I need to get busy on supper."

Justin pouted and moved out of the way, grumbling, "Josh said it was okay and I _still_ don’t get to have no fun."

Lance tried not to laugh at that. "Sweetheart, I think it’s safe to say you have plenty of fun. You don’t need to play with me while I’m trying to cook, too."

Justin sat down next to Charlie, not even noticing the still-shocked look on Charlie’s face. "But it was the perfect chance, Poof. It’s not very often I can sneak up on you like that and corner you."

Lance chuckled and turned the stove on. "And you’ll get even fewer chances if you keep ambushing me like you’ve been doing today."

Mike’s eyebrows went up again at that and he wanted to ask when Justin had already ambushed him, remembering when Lance had walked in blushing earlier, but he decided to wait and see what Justin said. Mike was learning he could just sit quietly and learn at least as much as if he’d been nosy and asked, since the guys had a habit of forgetting he was there and inadvertantly answering questions he hadn’t even thought to ask yet.

"Hey," Justin said with a sudden grin, "I didn’t ambush you earlier! You were being really sweet so I kissed you." Justin paused and then watched Lance put burgers in the skillet as he added, "It’s not like I used tongue or anything."

Lance snorted softly as he put some of the burgers on to cook on low heat and then started filling the second skillet. "I wouldn’t put it past you to try."

Justin grinned. "Not without some sort of invitation."

Lance thought about that while he finished filling the skillet and put it on the other burner, then turned around to lean against the counter by the stove and grin at Justin. "You’ll have to earn that, Curly."

Justin’s grin widened into a smirk. "Why don’t you save us both some trouble and just say it now?"

Lance snorted. "You wish."

 

 


	50. Chapter 50

 

~~~~50~~~~

 

When JC walked out of the kitchen he went straight down the hallway to the door to the room Lance, Joey, and Chris were sharing and knocked softly.

"Come on in," Chris’ voice said, followed by Joey saying something too quiet for JC to hear.

JC opened the door and stepped inside to close it behind him, keeping his eyes down until he heard Joey chuckle and say, "It’s okay to look."

JC looked up to see both of them sitting up and grinning at him, and gave them a sheepish grin, blushing a bit. "I hope I didn’t bother you."

Chris laughed, pulling the blanket further up. "No C, we’re just talking. What’d you need?"

Joey nodded, smiling and leaning back against the headboard with the sheet covering him just enough to keep JC from blushing too much more. "Yeah Josh, have a seat and tell us what’s on your mind."

JC walked over to sit on the end of the bed, giving them both a hesitant smile. "Well, um... I don’t really know how to say it."

Chris grinned. "Start at the beginning, Joshua, and when you get to the end, stop."

JC laughed. "You make it sound so easy. Okay, um, well, I guess the best place to start is to say that Justin kissed Lance, and I wanted to talk to y’all about it."

Joey’s eyebrows went up and he grinned. "You’re kidding?!"

"Good for him!" Chris added, his brown eyes sparkling. "Did you see them?" JC nodded, looking a little surprised, and Chris said, "Well, tell us, Josh. What’d they do?"

"They were talking and Lance said something sweet – Justin didn’t want to say exactly what, but he did tell me they were talking about me, which made no sense but—" JC broke off, aware he was rambling, and went on. "Anyway, Lance told Justin to go spend some time with me and Justin kissed him."

"That’s it?" Chris asked, looking a little disappointed. "No necking? Or groping?"

JC laughed, his cheeks going a bit pink as he shook his head. "No, just a kiss."

"Then why bother telling us?" Joey asked, smiling at JC. "You need us to help you kick Justin’s ass for straying?"

JC shook his head quickly. "Oh no, Justin and I have talked about it, he knew I was okay with it. I just wanted to be sure you guys are too."

Joey chuckled and Chris grinned as he said, "Josh, Lance is a big boy now, he doesn’t need permission to kiss someone."

"Yeah, but it affects you two too, and before I do it I—"

"You’d do that?" Chris interrupted, his eyes a little wide.

JC looked surprised. "Do what?"

"Kiss him," Joey said, also looking a little surprised.

JC looked confused. "Well, yeah, if that’s okay with you two."

Chris and Joey both grinned then as Chris asked, "Can we watch?"

JC blushed bright red. "I wasn’t planning to hide."

Chris bounced a bit on the bed, the blanket slipping enough to make JC look away quickly as Chris grinned at Joey. "I get to watch Joshua kiss our boy! Scoop is gonna be so happy, but I bet he turns even redder than Josh is now."

Joey chuckled. "They’ll both be pretty red in the face, I bet."

Chris looked at JC, grinning like the cat that ate the canary as he absently pulled the blanket back up. "I bet you’re right..." Chris trailed off, and was quiet a second, then asked, "Is this exception to your monogamy going to be a Scoop-only sort of thing?"

JC’s eyes widened. "There’s not going to be any exception, Chris. Justin and I both agreed to that."

"Then what—" Chris started, breaking off to look at JC for a long minute before he tried again. "So you’re just going to kiss him, and that’s it?"

JC nodded, blushing as he added, "Maybe a little more. A lot of it depends on him."

"Josh," Joey said quietly then, "be sure just what you’re willing to do before you start anything, please? Lance loves you more than he wants to admit even to himself, I’m sure of it, and if you do anything with him you regret later it’ll really hurt him."

Chris looked thoughtful then as JC gave Joey an earnest look and said, "I don’t think he’ll push for more than I can give, Joe, if I did I wouldn’t even consider it. Lance knows how I feel about Justin, and he knows—" JC broke off, looking down at his knee as he said, "Well, I think Justin probably told him some things today, I know Justin has been thinking about it and trying to work through it." JC looked back up and met Joey’s eyes. "I won’t deny that I want Lance, he’s a beautiful man, and I love him enough that I want more than friendship, but I’m not going to let things go too far. If it feels right I want to be able to kiss him, or tickle him, or cuddle with him..." JC trailed off again, not knowing how to explain how he felt or what he wanted. "Justin loves him too, but he’s not going to do anything either unless you two are okay with it."

"Like I asked before, is this a Lance-only thing?" Chris asked, watching JC with a little smile and thinking Justin was a lucky, lucky man.

JC face flushed and he looked down at his lap again. "Only if you want it to be."

Joey chuckled and said, "Josh, look at me." JC looked up, his cheeks flaming, and Joey went on, "We love you, if you want to kiss us we’re not about to argue."

"Hell no, I may throw a party to celebrate!" Chris said with a smirk, making Joey laugh as JC blushed even redder.

Joey swatted him lightly. "Critter, cool it, you’re embarrassing him."

Chris grinned at Joey and moved towards him, the blanket slipping again as he said, "I’m about to embarrass him even more."

JC looked up, his blue eyes going wide as he saw how far the blanket had slipped. He turned to look at the door as he quickly stood up and headed out of the room as he stammered, "Uh, I’m, uh, going now. Buh-bye!"

Joey chuckled as JC opened the door and Chris called, "Tell Scoop I said to play and be nice!"

JC’s face was flaming as he shut the door behind him and stopped there, leaning against the wall as he tried to will the blush away so Justin and Lance wouldn’t tease him about it. He’d been there only a moment when he suddenly heard a low noise from inside the room followed by an amused voice saying, "Damn Critter, again?"

JC clearly heard Chris chuckle then and reply, "Thinkin’ about kissing Josh has that affect on me Joeybear, you’d better get used to it," which made JC’s blush came back with a vengeance. He pushed away from the door and hurried away from it before he heard any more, deciding that he really needed to go find something in his room. He’d figure out what once he could think in complete sentences again.

 

 

 

Charlie and Mike had gone to call Kelsey to see how her practicing for the shag contest on Friday was going, leaving Justin sitting alone watching Lance flip the burgers with a grin as he wondered how JC’s talk with the other two had gone. He’d heard JC leave their room a bit ago and then heard the door to their own room close, and it had been quiet ever since other than the soft sounds of frying meat.

Lance suddenly asked, "Why?" without turning around or even looking up.

Justin’s eyebrows went up, his grin fading only a bit. "Why what?"

Lance flipped the last burger and then turned to lean back against the counter and look at Justin, looking serious and a little confused. "You’ve got Josh, why would you want to fuck around with me? And why would he encourage you?"

Justin frowned and said, "Lance, I – _we_ wouldn’t fuck around with you. We love you too much to play you like that."

Lance shifted, folding his arms across his chest. "Then why are you suddenly coming on to me, Justin? We’ve known each other for a long time, and you’ve never once acted like you wanted to kiss me until now. What changed?"

"Well, you know I’m gay now, and Josh knows, so I haven’t got much to hide from you anymore." Justin shrugged, smiling. "I felt like it, and Josh is okay with it."

Lance looked at Justin for a long moment, thinking about how JC could forgive Justin for anything and how Justin never seemed to know when he was taking advantage of JC’s love, then he finally asked, "And did Joshua say that before or after the fact?"

"Before," Justin answered quickly, looking surprised again. "We talked about it the other night, when he realized you’re in l—"

Justin broke off and Lance gave him a wry little smile and finished, "When he realized I’m in love with him."

Justin nodded, smiling crookedly at Lance. "Yeah."

Lance looked at Justin expectantly, and when Justin didn’t say anything Lance asked incredulously, "And you don’t have a problem with that?"

Justin laughed and stood, walking over to Lance. "Why should I mind? We love you too, Lance, both of us. We want you happy, and I know you want us to be happy, so there’s nothing to have a problem about."

Lance stared up at him for a long moment then smiled slightly. "Is it that easy to you? As much as you love him, as much as he loves you?"

Justin nodded, smiling. "Yeah, pretty much. Josh loves you and knows he’s safe with you, or Joe, or Chris. I’ve always known I could trust you guys with anything, even Josh."

"So you two are going to give Chris the orgy he wanted?" Lance asked, blushing just a bit but not wavering from meeting Justin’s gaze with his own.

Justin laughed softly. "No, Josh doesn’t want it to go too far – not any time soon anyway – but he wants more than friendship just like I do, and like we think you do. We both love you guys enough that we want to be able to kiss you if we feel like it, or hug you, or," Justin grinned and stepped just a bit closer, resting his hands on the counter on either side of Lance as he finished, "tickle you breathless."

Lance chuckled. "Not right now, Jup, please. I’ve gotta watch these burgers. Why don’t you go see what’s on tv or something?" Lance smiled up at him, unfolding his arms to rest both hands on Justin’s waist and ready to start tickling him if Justin even thought about starting in on Lance’s ribs again. Justin was at least as ticklish as Lance was, and if he was ready for him Lance was sure he could tickle Justin into backing off before Justin could tickle him into submission again.

Justin grinned. "Alright, I’ll go be good and let you cook in peace."

Lance’s smile widened into a grin. "And would you let Charlie know he can start the shrimp?" Justin nodded and started to turn away until Lance’s hands tightened on his waist, and he looked questioningly at him as Lance looked up at him and said softly, "Thank you."

Justin returned the smile and leaned down to give Lance a quick kiss before he said, "You’re welcome, Poof, but I didn’t do anything."

Lance chuckled again and let his hands drop from Justin’s waist. "To hear you tell it you never do anything."

Justin grinned at him and then started across the kitchen to the door that led to the living room. "Nope, sure don’t. I’m the laziest guy around here."

Lance laughed and shook his head, watching Justin leave before he turned back to the burgers.

 

 

 

JC sat quietly on the deck looking out at the ocean in the dark. He was thinking again, or more precisely _worrying_ again over something any of the other guys would have found completely ridiculous, especially Justin, but that JC couldn’t get out of his head. He knew he was a lot more experienced sexually than Justin was, but he also knew that wasn’t saying a whole lot. It had taken him _years_ to get around to doing some of the things he and Justin had done right from the start. Justin had quickly picked up anything JC was willing to show him so far and added more than a few ideas of his own, and JC was already running out of new things to show his ever-curious best friend and lover after less than a week.

It wasn’t that the ‘old’ things had lost any of their attraction for them, or that they were getting bored with each other or anything – JC could spend hours just touching Justin and be perfectly happy – but JC still wished he knew more. It was rare for him to know more than Justin about something that Justin was interested in, and Justin loved to learn something new from JC almost as much as JC loved actually being able to show it to him. JC knew eventually they’d each know everything the other did, and he invariably enjoyed it when he could get Justin to tell him one of his little inspirations, but JC was still wondering exactly where Justin’s ideas would take them.

Justin was the braver of the two – JC was a wuss and he knew it – and every one of Justin’s tattoos proved that he wasn’t afraid of a little pain. JC hated it, but he had a niggling little corner of his mind that was worried Justin would want to try some of the things Tony had been so fascinated by. Every time the idea occurred to him JC firmly squashed it, but it still returned at the oddest times, like late at night when JC held Justin and watched him sleep or even when they’d been walking on the beach that evening, and it was beginning to bother him. He wasn’t sure he could take it if Justin ever wanted to try bondage or dominance games, not because he was afraid of Justin, but because he had so many bad memories associated with it.

JC was so absorbed in his thoughts that he didn’t hear Justin walk through their room and stop at the doorway behind him to watch as the cool breeze made JC shiver. Justin was just about to go wrap his arms around him to warm him up when JC pulled his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. Justin folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the doorjamb then, silently watching while JC stared out at the water and thinking how very beautiful JC was.

JC wondered if he was strong enough to tell Justin no if – when? – Justin truly wanted to try something that JC didn’t want to do. JC loved him more than anything, quite simply more than life, and would do almost anything to please Justin. He was pretty sure that if it came right down to it he’d do whatever Justin wanted him to do, so the only question was exactly what Justin might ask of him. JC trusted Justin, but he also knew Justin’s curiosity knew no bounds.

JC began to sing softly then, surprising Justin even though Justin knew he often sang when he was alone; JC said it helped him think. " _’_ _Standing on a wilder shore, I got my head up in the clouds, oh, I ain_ _’_ _t got no sense of direction now. I wanna lie next to you and I wanna do everything you want me to. Sometimes I wish at the sky, I imagine what the clouds look like... When I see you I remember, unconditional love, love, love, unconditional love. When I see you I surrender, unconditional love..._ ’"

JC trailed off and was silent a moment, knowing what his answer would be no matter what Justin asked of him, then he sang again so softly that Justin could barely hear him. " _’_ _Will you hold me sacred? Will you hold me tight? Can you colorize my life? I_ _’_ _m so sick of black and white. Can you make it all a little less old?_ ’"

Justin picked up the next line, his voice as quiet as JC’s as he sang, " _’_ _I can do that. Oh, oh, now I can do that._ ’"

JC turned his head to look at Justin in surprise, his blue eyes shining in the dark as he stood and walked towards Justin. "I didn’t hear you come out."

Justin gave JC a sweet smile and opened his arms in invitation. "I know, babe. C’mere." JC stepped into his arms and rested his chin on Justin’s shoulder as Justin’s arms wrapped around him, then Justin put his lips by JC’s ear as he sang softly, " _’_ _Hey, don_ _’_ _t falter, you know we ought to be together. Strange, I saw ya, I sorta knew it was forever. Please, stay with me, and never miss a chance to kiss me. Hey, I love ya, when you_ _’_ _re with me it_ _’_ _s always summer._ ’"

JC smiled and pulled his head back just enough to see Justin’s face, his blue eyes full of love as he asked softly, "How do you do that?"

Justin returned the smile and replied, "I’m good, babe." Justin paused a beat, then grinned and asked, "How do I do what?"

JC giggled and laid his cheek on Justin’s shoulder, facing away from his neck and holding him tight as he said softly, "You said the exact thing I needed to hear, without even asking me what I was thinking about first."

"Oh, well, that’s because I can read your mind," Justin said softly, grinning when JC giggled again, then he ducked his head to kiss the back of JC’s neck. "Now tell me why you’re hiding out here being all depressed, baby. Did it go badly with Joe and Chris?"

JC shook his head slightly, not lifting it from Justin’s shoulder or moving otherwise. "No, they’re happy with the whole idea just like we thought they’d be. I was thinking about something else."

Justin waited quietly for a few minutes for JC to tell him what was on his mind, but his patience finally ran out so he had to ask. "What?"

JC took a deep breath and let it out slowly, closing his eyes as he remembered his promise never to hide it when he was afraid or feeling alone again. He finally said, "I was wishing I knew more about sex so I could show you more, and wondering what you’d want to do once I run out of ideas."

Justin chuckled softly. "That’s an easy one, babe. You."

JC pulled back to look at him, looking a little surprised but smiling. "It’s that simple?"

Justin nodded, smiling. "Yep."

"You won’t want to, I don’t know, try new things?" JC asked.

"I love you, babe," Justin replied, "and I don’t need to do something new to be happy with you. I’d be perfectly content just to hold you all night and kiss you. Everything else is just gravy." Justin was pretty sure he knew what JC was thinking, and wanted to be sure he knew he didn’t have to worry.

JC looked at Justin, feeling a bit happier. "I am an idiot. I was worried you would want to—" He broke off, then said, "Well, I should have known better."

"I will never intentionally ask anything of you that you don’t want to do," Justin said, lifting one hand to gently stroke JC’s face as he went on, "and I hope you’ll always tell me if I accidentally ask for something you’re uncomfortable with. We already agreed we don’t do any of the shit that bastard pulled on you, remember? I didn’t want to try that sort of thing before, and I definitely don’t want to now that I know how he hurt you."

"You’re so good to me," JC said softly then, smiling. "I’m the luckiest man alive."

"No, babe," Justin said with a little smile, "I am." He kissed JC gently then, responding warmly when JC wanted to deepen the kiss.

He forgot all about the fact that Lance had sent him to tell JC supper was ready.

 

 

 

After making sure everyone else had all they needed, Lance finally sat down and made himself a burger. He had just taken the first bite when Chris swallowed and asked, "How long is it gonna take Jup to tell him supper is ready?"

Lance chewed quickly, frowning, then swallowed. "Well, it shouldn’t have taken long really, unless Justin forgot what he went in there to do. I guess I’d better go check on them." Lance put his burger down and started to get up but Chris beat him to it.

"You eat babe, I’ll go get them," Chris said, patting Lance’s shoulder.

Lance gave Chris a quelling look. "Don’t embarass Josh too bad, okay?"

Chris chuckled and started down the hall. "I’ll be good."

Lance sighed, sure Chris’ idea of good and his were different, but he picked his sandwich back up to begin eating again.

Chris walked quickly down the darkened hall, pausing at JC and Justin’s door and surprised to find it open. Chris walked into the room and looked towards the only source of light, a slow smile appearing on his face as he watched JC and Justin out on the deck, kissing in the moonlight. Chris watched them for a minute or so before he said quietly, "Guys? Supper’s getting cold."

JC and Justin pulled apart, JC smiling at Chris while Justin’s eyes went wide and he said, "Oops."

Chris chuckled, nodding. "Yeah, Juppy, oops."

JC looked at Chris and then at Justin, grinning suddenly. "Baby, did you come out here to tell me supper was ready?"

Justin nodded, stepping away from JC and grabbing his hand to tow him towards Chris. "Uh-huh, and you have to eat a whole burger."

JC chuckled and let Justin pull him into the room. "You’d better let me have two!"

Justin laughed, and then paused next to Chris to suddenly kiss the older man’s cheek. "Thank you."

Chris stared at Justin in surprise, his eyes wide, and wasn’t at all prepared when JC kissed him on the other cheek and said, "Yeah Chris, thanks."

"Wh— Wha— What for?!" Chris asked, glad it was dark enough they couldn’t see him blushing.

Justin chuckled and patted Chris’ shoulder with his free hand. "For everything." He continued on towards the door, tugging JC along behind him.

JC laughed and looked over his shoulder at Chris as he said, "I was thinking more along the line of thanks for telling us supper’s ready. I’m starved!"

Chris laughed and followed them, shaking his head as he wondered exactly what he and Joey had agreed to, and thinking that they were pretty lucky to have been asked to begin with.

 

 


	51. Chapter 51

 

~~~~51~~~~

 

Supper was typical of any meal when the guys were alone together, full of laughter and teasing and the occasional piece of flying food, and by the time the shrimp were all gone Mike and Charlie had both settled into treating them like any other guys. If anyone but Lance noticed when Mike called JC ‘Josh’ they didn’t show it, just like Mike didn’t seem to notice when Chris called him ‘Mikey’ and Justin didn’t bat an eye when Charlie finally relaxed enough to tease him and called him ‘Juppy’. Lance watched them all talking and playing with a grin or a smile or even the occasional laugh, glad they’d stumbled across Mike and Charlie if for no other reason than the fact they were great company.

They’d all finished eating and had consumed way too many drinks of the sugary caffeinated sort by ten o’clock, and Chris was almost vibrating with all the extra energy when Lance finally suggested they find a movie or something to watch before bed. Chris immediately latched onto that idea and bounced up to bound off through the house as he hollered that he got the remote, making the others all laugh as Charlie and Lance both stood to start clearing the table.

"He’s never gonna go to sleep tonight," Joey said with a low chuckle, making Lance laugh and nod as he put the sliced tomatoes left over into the bowl with the onions.

"Scoop, that ruined those tomatoes," JC said, making a face. "They’ll taste all oniony now."

Lance gave JC a tolerant grin and put the bowl in the fridge. "There are some left that Joe didn’t cut up, you can eat one of those if you want. The rest are going in the omelets."

"Dude!" Justin said with a big grin, "We get omelets?!"

Lance laughed and walked back to the table to start putting the bacon on the same plate with the leftover hamburgers, ruffling Justin’s curls on his way past him. "Yeah Curly, I’m going to make omelets in the morning. Mike and Charlie bought two dozen eggs and I got the cheese and milk when we were at the store, so we’ve got plenty of other stuff to go in them."

"Oooh," JC said then, grinning, "I want one with bacon and tomatoes and extra cheese."

Lance chuckled, picking up the plate of meat and the bowl of lettuce to carry them over to where Charlie was putting more drinks in the fridge. "I know how you like your omelet, Josh, just like I know Justin will want a cheesey one and Joe will eat whatever I put in front of him but would prefer an omelet with tomatoes and onions and some sausage and bacon chopped up in it, and Chris will want one with onions and sausage and nothing else."

Charlie chuckled and moved over to let Lance put away the meat. "And how do you like your omelet, Lance?"

"With tomatoes and onions," JC said with a smile.

"And cheese!" Justin added, grinning

"And bacon," Joey finished with a little chuckle.

Lance laughed and stepped towards the table again, gesturing towards the other three. "Well, you heard them."

Charlie grinned and started putting away drinks again while Lance started stacking dishes to carry them to the sink, but after only a moment Mike stood and reached for the stack of plates, gently pulling them from Lance’s surprised hands. "Boss," Mike said with a little smile, "you’re supposed to be on vacation. I’ll get these."

Lance looked like he wanted to argue but Charlie grinned and said, "Yeah, let us take care of cleaning up in here. You guys go try out that hot tub or something."

"Mmm," Joey said with a little smirk, "I like the way these two think."

Lance gave Joey a dirty look while JC stood, moving towards Lance with a little grin as he said, "Oh yeah," in a tone that made Lance look at JC in surprise.

Lance’s eyes went wide when he saw JC’s face and he stepped backward, JC following him with an almost predatory grin. Lance’s butt hit the counter after a couple of steps and then his voice shook a little as he asked, "Uh, J- Josh? Wha- What are you doing?"

Mike wasn’t surprised – well, okay, he wasn’t as surprised as Charlie – and watched with a little grin, wondering how far JC would go while Charlie just stared at them wide-eyed.

JC moved closer, his hands settling at Lance’s waist as he leaned in and said, "Well, first I’m going to kiss you," JC lightly kissed Lance’s jaw, "a few times," JC’s lips kissed a little closer to Lance’s, "then I’m gonna drag you out on the deck," JC kissed him again, "and maybe steal your clothes."

JC kissed Lance’s lips then and Lance lifted his hands to close them several times on empty air, wanting to touch JC but not sure if it was allowed so he settled for grabbing the edge of the counter. Joey and Justin watched with almost identical grins while JC kissed Lance as though he had all the time in the world, gently coaxing him to respond while Lance held on to the counter as though his life depended on it and tried to memorize how JC’s lips and tongue felt. Lance finally made a soft little noise in his throat and pulled away, breathing hard as he looked down at JC’s chest, not wanting to meet his eyes and let JC see what he knew was in his own.

Charlie swallowed hard, wondering if there was anything the five men didn’t share now since Justin had told him that all they didn’t share was JC. That had been a definite ‘I want to swallow you whole, tongue first’ kiss as far as Charlie could tell, not a friendly ‘I love you man’ kiss, and Charlie was half expecting JC to start taking off Lance’s shirt next.

"Wha—" Lance said after a moment, his voice shaky and rough, then he swallowed and tried again, still not looking up as his face flamed. "What was that?"

JC smiled, his blue eyes bright as he lifted one hand from Lance’s waist to tip his head up in an attempt to get Lance to look at him. "That was a kiss. Most people think it’s a fun way to pass the time."

Joey and Justin laughed, remembering when Chris had told Lance the very same thing just a few days before, and Lance couldn’t help a little smile too as he finally looked up into JC’s eyes. "Not to be followed by gettin’ freaky though, right?"

JC’s smile widened into a little bit of a smirk as he let his hand fall from Lance’s chin to rest on his waist again. "Well, not with _me_ , but Joe’s just right over there, and Chris is high as a kite on Dew so I’m sure he’d be happy to oblige." JC ducked his head suddenly to give Lance a quick kiss, then stepped back, grabbing his hand as he said, "Now c’mon, Charlie had a great idea."

JC started dragging Lance towards the door, reaching to grab Justin’s hand in his on his way past him and pull him to his feet so that he left the kitchen dragging both of them while Joey watched them go, chuckling.

"Wow," Mike said softly after a minute. "What brought that on?"

Joey grinned and stood, stretching as he answered just as quietly, "Josh figured out Lance is in love with him and even though he’s Justin’s, heart and soul, he loves Lance too and he wants to give him as much as he can." Joey walked to the fridge to get another Dr. Pepper, popping the tab as he smiled at Mike and Charlie. "And Justin feels pretty much the same way and came to the same conclusions." He tipped the can up to take a long drink.

"And you don’t mind," Charlie said, making it a statement instead of a question.

Joey swallowed quickly, then laughed. "Oh hell no, I’m not about to argue. Josh is a lot of fun to kiss from all I’ve seen, and I know Lance will enjoy it." Joey gave them a quick grin and left the kitchen the way the others had gone, leaving Mike and Charlie giving each other bemused looks.

"I think JC has gotten over being shy," Mike said after a long pause, giving Charlie a little grin.

Charlie laughed and began clearing away the last of the stuff on the table. "Yeah, I think you could say that!"

 

 

 

JC dragged Lance and Justin straight into the den where Chris was bouncing around to a video playing on MTV2’s ‘120 Minutes’. Chris stopped and stared in surprise as JC dragged them both into the room and headed towards the sliding glass door on the far side of the room, saying only, "Get the door Chris, quick."

Chris scampered over to open it, then followed the other three through the door as he asked, "Uh, where are we going?"

Lance was having second thoughts about this whole idea and was dragging his feet more, making JC slow down just as Justin looked over his shoulder at Chris and grinned. "To the hot tub."

Chris’ eyes got big and he moved up behind Lance to start pushing as he hollered, "Joe! Get your ass out here, man!"

Justin and JC both started laughing while Lance tried to stop, shaking his head. "C’mon guys, you don’t really want to do this... Why don’t we take a rain check?"

Justin let go of JC’s hand and JC turned to face Lance, reaching to grab his free hand so JC was dragging him with both hands while Chris urged him on from behind. "But Scoop," JC said with a grin, "it’s not raining."

Lance rolled his eyes and sounded exasperated and a little upset when he said, "I _know_ it’s not raining, Joshua! Just let me go, okay?!"

JC stopped pulling immediately, but he held on to Lance’s hands and pouted. "Please come play?"

Justin moved over next to JC to add his own pout and big blue eyes, as he added, "Yeah, pretty please, Poofu?"

Chris slid his arms around Lance’s waist from behind and put his lips by Lance’s ear as he said, "With lots of sugar on top?" Chris grinned wickedly at JC and Justin as he whispered too softly for them to hear, "Or on bottom if you want, baby."

Lance shivered, looking from JC to Justin and back to JC to look at him for a long moment before he suddenly heard Joey say, "Do what you feel."

Lance turned his head in surprise to look towards Joey’s voice in time to see him slide the door closed and then walk towards them. "We won’t do anything you don’t want to, babe," Joey said quietly, smiling, "so don’t fight it."

Lance looked at Joey a long moment and then turned back to JC as he said firmly, "We are _not_ having sex."

"Of course not," JC replied, "but I’d really like to get to know you a little better."

JC gave him a little grin then, making Lance chuckle and ask, "What happened to the guy who didn’t want us to see him without his clothes?"

JC’s grin widened. "He got laid. A lot. Really well."

Justin blushed at that but it didn’t keep him from grinning as Lance chuckled and then was quiet a moment, looking at JC as he stroked Chris’ arm where they rested around his waist. "I know how Joe feels. What do you think about this, Chris?"

Chris gently nibbled Lance’s ear, then said softly, "I love you, and Joe, and Josh, and even the Infant. I don’t see anything wrong with a little kissing and cuddling with them. We’re all adults." Justin wanted to point out then that Chris could stop calling him ‘Infant’ if they were all adults, but he didn’t want to distract Lance so he kept his mouth shut.

Lance was quiet a moment longer, still watching JC, and then said, "Only if Joe and Chris get to play too."

JC grinned. "I seriously doubt either of them is going to say no. Or drag their feet." Lance chuckled again then and JC reached to take one of Lance’s hands again and gave it a gentle tug, wordlessly asking him to come on.

Lance finally took another step forward after a second to let JC lead him by the hand. "This is like the beginning of some bad, kinky joke. ‘Five gay men get into a hot tub--’"

Chris let go of Lance and followed them down the steps into the recessed alcove where the hot tub was, Joey falling into step next to him with a chuckle as he said, "Yeah, baby, but kinky can be a lot of fun."

"Oh yeah," Justin said, grinning as he crossed the deck by the hot tub towards the stairs leading to the back deck. JC chuckled, stopping near the hot tub just as Justin flipped on the ambient lighting, adjusting it so that it was no brighter than candlelight would have been because he was sure that JC at least wouldn’t want bright lighting for this.

JC saw the indecision still in Lance’s eyes then and stood quietly a moment just looking into that green gaze, completely unable to think of what he should say to reassure him. "We don’t have to do this," JC said finally, giving Lance a soft smile. "I understand if you don’t want to, it is kind of sudden."

Lance stepped closer even though JC wasn’t pulling on his hand anymore, blushing. "I do want to, Josh. I— I just don’t want you to do anything you’ll regret later."

JC let go of Lance’s hand to move even closer, resting his hands on Lance’s waist as he smiled down into still-worried green eyes. "I won’t regret a thing, I promise. I want this, we both do."

Lance turned his head to look questioningly at Justin, who’d sat down on the steps, and Justin gave him a smile. "Poof, he loves you and wants to be closer to all three of you, and I know you all feel the same. I’d like to, too, if you guys are okay with that." Justin looked hopeful but more than halfway like he expected them to say no, and Joey snorted.

"Juppy, stupid, have you looked in the mirror recently?” Chris asked, grinning. Justin nodded, looking surprised, and Joey chuckled as Chris asked, "Then why would we not want to kiss you, kid? You’re a little dense and you can be completely clueless sometimes but we still love you, and you look so damn good in those sweats that I can’t wait to see you out of them."

Justin turned bright red, looking down at his lap with a sudden little smile as JC chuckled and said, "See, baby? I told you so." JC looked back at Lance, waiting patiently for him to decide while Lance looked up into those soft blue eyes he’d loved for years, and after several long minutes Lance gave him a little smile.

"How far is this going to go?" Lance asked softly, finally resting his hands on JC’s waist.

"Depends on you." JC’s thumbs moved slightly, stroking the skin at Lance’s waist just enough to make Lance wish for more.

"I meant it when I said I won’t have sex with either of you," Lance said looking serious, "but anything else you want is alright, okay?"

JC just leaned down to kiss him instead of answering, smiling into the kiss when Lance’s hands tightened on his waist and Lance made a soft noise, shifting closer. Chris moved over then so he had a better view of JC and Lance kissing while Joey efficiently stripped out of his clothes – all of them – and then climbed into the hot tub to settle down and watch in comfort, grinning. This was better than a movie any day!

JC was obviously in charge with Lance following his lead without asking for more, and after a few minutes JC pulled away just enough to trail soft kisses across Lance’s jaw. Lance held on to JC’s waist and let him explore, his green eyes closed and his breathing a little ragged as he tried not to make a fool of himself and come in his pants. Lance had wanted this – dreamed of it even, hot little daydreams he figured didn’t count as wet dreams since he didn’t let it go quite that far – for years, wondered what it would feel like for those long, delicate fingers to play his body like they played a keyboard. He had been sure it would be amazing, but he had been wrong. It passed amazing the moment JC’s lips touched his and went on into indescribable.

JC kissed his way across to Lance’s ear and nuzzled the skin behind it, gently nibbling his earlobe before he began kissing and licking a trail down his throat, speaking softly when his mouth wasn’t otherwise occupied. "I’ve always ... wondered ... how you’d ... taste. You have ... such ... beautiful skin." JC’s lips found Lance’s collarbone then and sucked gently at the sensitive skin, drawing a soft moan from the shorter man.

Lance shuddered after a moment, his green eyes finally fluttering open as he said softly, "Josh."

JC lifted his head to meet Lance’s eyes, smiling softly as Lance wordlessly leaned up to ask for another kiss. JC complied, exploring Lance’s mouth with his tongue while his hands finally began to roam over Lance’s body. JC moved slowly and gently, quite able to feel the constant tremble in Lance’s sturdy frame and not wanting to push him past what he was comfortable with. Lance finally relaxed after another few moments though, letting himself respond fully to JC’s kisses as his hands slid beneath JC’s t-shirt to stroke across the smooth skin of his back.

Justin watched them wide-eyed from his seat on the steps, more turned on by seeing Lance with JC than he’d ever been watching Lance with Joey or Chris and a little confused by the phenomenon, but not really trying to fight it. Justin was almost afraid to blink though, not wanting to miss a thing as JC began to ease Lance’s shirt up even though he’d seen Lance in just his underwear a thousand times. He wanted to go join them then, wanted to help JC explore the creamy pale skin that Justin had never really noticed before, or to help Lance expose more of JC’s lean body or even just to touch either – both? – of them.

JC pulled away from Lance a moment later, looking into slightly glazed green eyes as he slowly drew Lance’s shirt over his head, and then let Lance remove his shirt too before they moved together again, kissing as their hands stroked newly bared flesh. Justin swallowed hard when Lance’s fingers finally slipped just beneath the waist of JC’s loose sweats a few minutes later, knowing exactly how soft the skin there felt and wanting nothing more at that moment than to have that strip of smooth, pale skin under his own hands, or his lips.

JC began trailing kisses down Lance’s neck again then, this time continuing past the reddened spot he’d left on Lance’s collarbone as his hands gently stroked down Lance’s sides and then over his hips, making Lance moan softly again when JC’s lips finally found a nipple. Lance’s hands moved to JC’s shoulders after a moment, holding on and swaying slightly as he shuddered under JC’s expert assault, a perfect blend of teeth and tongue and lips that had Lance making soft little noises in his throat and left him breathing hard and wanting more when JC finally began to make his way across to Lance’s other nipple.

Lance didn’t even feel it when JC’s hands moved to his waist a moment later, but he gasped when he felt his zipper slide down, freeing him from the too-tight constriction of his jeans as JC slid them down his legs, stroking his thighs along the way. JC slowly kissed his way back up Lance’s body then, pausing to gently lave the mark he’d left on Lance’s collarbone before he continued up to kiss his lips again. Lance responded eagerly to JC’s kiss, letting JC keep control as JC sucked gently on his tongue, drawing a low groan from Lance as he finally pulled back to look at JC with desire darkened eyes.

"I’d love to let you kiss me all night," Lance said softly then, his voice low and slightly rough, "but I’m not gonna be able to take much more."

JC chuckled and then kissed him again, licking and sucking at Lance’s lower lip and drawing another soft moan before he pulled away just enough to whisper, "You could join Joe in the hot tub. I’m sure he’d be happy to continue where I left off."

Lance gave JC a little smile and nodded, tipping his chin up to wordlessly ask for another kiss before he finally stepped away and then turned to step down into the hot tub. He completely missed the way JC watched him go with an expression that was a mixture of amusement and love and something harder to define.

JC suddenly turned to look at Chris then, a wicked grin blooming on his face. "You sir, are wearing way too many clothes," JC said, moving purposefully towards Chris as the older man’s eyes went as big as saucers.

"Uh, I—I don’t n-need help," Chris stammered as JC reached him, keeping his hands well away from JC even though he really wanted to see if JC’s skin felt as silky-smooth as it looked.

Lance had moved into Joey’s arms in the hot tub, kissing him and then turning to lean back against his chest to watch Chris with JC with a little grin. Lance was sure Chris was going to be completely floored by the fact it was JC – who Lance was quite sure Chris was completely gone on – that was kissing and touching him. Lance had just found out for himself how very overwhelming JC could be when he wanted to, and he knew from personal experience that Chris usually responded even more to kissing and touching than he did. JC’s hands were just as agile and skilled as they looked, and Lance didn’t wonder anymore why Justin never seemed to get enough of JC kissing and touching him. As far as Lance was concerned Justin was one very lucky guy.

JC ignored Chris’ stammering and grabbed the hem of his shirt. "You can’t get in the water wearing these, so they’ve gotta come off." JC pulled the shirt over Chris’ head and then gave him another wicked little grin as he grabbed the waist of Chris’ shorts, urging him closer as JC leaned down to kiss him.

Chris’ hands clutched the loose denim along the sides of his shorts as he tried to keep from touching JC, trembling when JC’s hands slid around to his back and then making soft little noises as JC licked and nibbled his lips and tongue. JC explored Chris’ mouth slowly and thoroughly before he finally pulled back to look down into Chris’ glazed brown eyes, sounding amused as he said softly, "It’s okay to touch me, Chris. I won’t break."

JC kissed him again then and Chris lifted his hands to do as he’d been told, closing them on air twice before he finally rested them on JC’s waist, shuddering as JC’s hands slid lightly over his back and then down his hips to his thighs while JC sucked gently on his tongue. Chris finally began to respond then, hesitant and slow at first but gaining confidence when JC made a soft noise in his throat and arched against the hands slowly massaging his back. Chris’ hands roamed over JC’s body for several minutes more as they kissed, but he was careful not to let them slide below the waist because Chris didn’t think it was right, no matter what JC might be willing to let him do. He’d watched Justin watching JC with Lance, but he hadn’t been able to tell from Justin’s reactions if he’d liked watching them or not so Chris wasn’t going to push it.

Chris didn’t intend to do anything ‘serious’ anyway, mostly because he loved Lance and Joey and didn’t want them to think they weren’t enough for him, but also because he was sure Justin would never say anything against it even if he hated seeing them touch JC. Justin would insist anything JC wanted to do was fine with him until the cows came home, no matter what he really felt, and knowing Justin he’d even convince himself eventually that it was true. The fact that Justin was willing to share JC with them even this much awed Chris, and he didn’t want to give Justin any reason to regret the decision.

JC’s hands finally slid between their bodies then, making Chris pull away from their kiss to say softly, "You might not wanna do that."

Lance chuckled and JC grinned at Chris, his blue eyes sparkling. "And why not?"

"Cause he’s going commando," Joey said with a grin.

Chris blushed and nodded, looking at JC’s chest and thinking the whole ‘go without so he didn’t have to take them off again later’ idea hadn’t been one of his best, but JC’s nimble fingers went to the button of his low-slung shorts anyway. Chris looked up into JC’s amused blue eyes, surprise plain on his face, and JC leaned down to put his lips by Chris’ ear and whisper, "I’m not afraid if you aren’t."

Chris shuddered softly when JC’s fingers slipped just inside the waistband of his shorts, tickling the short, curly hair there, then closed his eyes and said softly, "G-go ahead."

Lance grinned over his shoulder at Joey, more than a little amused at Chris’ stammering – Chris _never_ acted nervous, not even when he really was – then looked back over and watched as JC unbuttoned and then unzipped Chris’ shorts. JC slid his hands under the waistband of Chris’ shorts then, pushing them down a bit and then letting them drop to the deck as his hands moved to the smooth skin of Chris’ hips. JC kissed him again, slowly exploring Chris’ mouth as his hands explored Chris’ body, stroking over full curves and enjoying the way the light dusting of soft, curly hair on Chris’ hips and thighs felt against his palms.

It was an almost scary revelation to Justin when he realized he wanted Chris – _really_ wanted him – and yeah, Lance too, and Justin shifted on the bench as he wondered if Joey would be next or if some complete stranger would suddenly seem irresistible. He hadn’t been kidding when he told the other guys he’d never really looked at anyone but JC, and to suddenly find that he could never say that again was a change he wasn’t sure he liked. He’d wanted JC pretty much since he was old enough to know what ‘wanting’ him meant, and even though he had become an expert at not thinking certain things around JC and wearing loose clothes to hide the inevitable reaction he always had to JC touching him, he’d never had anyone else inspire the same immediate reaction.

Every time Justin saw JC, he couldn’t help but think of how beautiful JC was and how the curve of his waist set off his perfect ass and his hands, slender and delicate as a girl’s, were strong enough to pick Justin up if he wanted to, or even the way JC’s beautiful blue eyes could see to his soul. He’d never though about anyone else the same way, but he was suddenly quite sure he could get used to thinking about Chris and Lance like that, and yeah, Joey too. They were his three best friends besides JC, and making the transition from just loving them to wanting them would be easy.

Justin shifted so that he was on the very edge of the top step then, watching JC stroke Chris’ hips as he realized he wanted to go find out for himself if that pale skin was as soft as it looked, and how the sparse, curly black hair there would feel against his palms. JC didn’t have a lot of body hair – Justin was pretty sure that JC waxed it off or used Nair or something, but he didn’t have proof – so Justin didn’t have any experience with how it might feel to touch someone as hairy as Chris was, and he found himself itching to find out. Justin was seeing Chris in a completely different light after watching him with JC for a few minutes, and he found himself wondering how Chris’ body would feel against his and if his skin would taste like JC’s did. Justin suddenly realized JC and Chris were both looking at him then and blushed, looking down at his feet.

The two older men shared a grin, both amused at Justin’s obvious interest as JC said, "Come here, baby."

Justin looked up quickly, his face still flaming and his eyes wide. "Why?"

Chris chuckled. "Just do it, Jup."

Justin stood slowly and walked towards them looking almost as if he expected to get into trouble when he got there, so JC reached out to take his hand and pull him the last few feet.

"You don’t have to watch from way over there, baby," JC said softly, smiling, "Chris won’t bite."

"Much," Chris added, giving Justin a wicked little smirk. It wasn’t often that Justin got shy and awkward, and Chris always loved to pick on him about it.

Justin gave Chris a little smile, still hesitant, and JC leaned to whisper something in Chris’ ear before he pulled away from Chris completely and moved to kiss Justin, who responded almost immediately by slipping his arms around JC and deepening the kiss. Justin made a soft little noise in protest when JC pulled away after only a moment, then his eyes went wide when JC stepped back and put his hands on Chris’ shoulders to put the older man – the _naked_ older man! – between them.

JC leaned against Chris’ back, looking into Justin’s surprised eyes as he said softly, "Go easy on him, Critter, he’s still a little shy."

Chris nodded, his smirk fading as JC stepped back, suddenly very aware of how much trust JC had in him to trust him with his ‘baby’. Chris knew Justin had never seriously fooled around with anyone but JC and that even though Justin was old enough to be considered a man by almost any standard he was still little more than a kid in many ways. Chris pushed that thought out of his mind – he _really_ didn’t want to think about the ten year difference in their ages just then – and smiled at Justin, a soft loving expression in his eyes that Justin had very seldom seen. "C’mere kid," Chris said softly, holding out a hand to Justin. "I won’t hurt you."

"I know that," Justin said, smiling suddenly but not moving to take Chris’ hand. "You’d never hurt any of us."

Chris cocked his head to one side, looking into Justin’s eyes for a long moment before he asked seriously, "Why are you afraid to touch me then?"

Justin’s eyes widened again and he opened his mouth to deny it, then shut it again and was silent, looking into Chris’ eyes for a long moment before he very softly admitted, "I’m afraid I won’t want to stop."

Chris grinned then and stepped towards Justin. "Don’t worry about that." He reached out to put his hands on Justin’s waist, looking up into dark blue eyes as he said, "I won’t let things get out of hand. Do whatever you want."

Justin looked seriously down into Chris’ deep brown eyes for a moment before he lifted his hands to hesitantly touch Chris’ waist and asked softly, "Can I kiss you?"

Chris chuckled. "I was sort of hoping you would, yeah."

Justin gave Chris a shy little smile and leaned down to kiss him, surprised when Chris let him set the pace but soon getting into it and gently opening Chris’ mouth with his tongue. French kissing Chris was very different from kissing JC or Britney – they were all Justin really had to compare – but Justin couldn’t immediately put his finger on exactly why. Kissing Britney had always been fun, like a game, but it had never held that thrill he got from kissing JC that made Justin want to get him alone and kiss him all over, or maybe let JC kiss him all over.

Kissing Chris was a little weird because a part of Justin’s mind kept repeating over and over again that it was _Chris_ he was kissing, the crazy little man Justin had idolized and played with for years, but the rest of him seemed to have no problem with the idea. Justin’s hands began to roam without him even thinking about it after a minute, stroking down the smooth skin of Chris’ hips and the coarse, curly hair on Chris’ thighs, then slowly sliding his hands up to run them over Chris’ ass and up to the small of his back.

Chris seemed to like what he was doing so Justin relaxed and finally began really getting into it, nibbling and sucking at Chris’ lips much like JC had until Chris was making soft little noises in his throat. Justin pulled away after a few moments of that to slowly kiss a damp trail across the older man’s stubbled jaw, intending to taste below Chris’ ear like he’d wanted to, and when Justin licked at Chris’ throat he felt Chris’ pulse leap under his tongue. Justin gently sucked at Chris’ skin then and heard him actually whimper, which made Justin grin against his neck before he began nibbling lightly down towards Chris’ shoulder and slid his hands back down to cup Chris’ ass, pulling him closer. Chris held on to his waist and shuddered as Justin sucked a little harder on the soft skin at his collarbone, unable to stifle a moan as Justin bit down gently, swirling his tongue agaist Chris’ skin.

"Damn, kid," Chris groaned out a moment later, "once you get started you really get started."

Justin lifted his head to look into Chris’ eyes, sliding his hands back up to Chris’ waist and giving him the cocky grin that had been plastered all over teeny mags for years. "Would you like me to stop?"

Chris looked up at Justin for a moment, wide-eyed and breathing a little bit unevenly, then said, "No, but maybe you’d better. Much more of that and I won’t be in any shape to stop you if you go to far."

Justin blushed a bit but his grin didn’t fade very much. "But I was just getting the hang of it."

Chris chuckled and pulled away as he said softly, "Kid, you’ve definitely got the hang of it, you don’t need _any_ practice."

Justin blushed even redder and let Chris go, watching him walk to the hot tub and climb in before he felt arms come around him from behind and lips brush his ear as a very familiar voice whispered, "That was so fucking hot."

 

 


	52. Chapter 52

 

~~~~52~~~~

 

Justin shivered slightly, turning in JC’s grasp as he quietly asked, "As good as watching you with them?" Justin gave JC a little grin and leaned in to kiss his neck, a little surprised to notice there was a slight but obvious difference between how JC tasted and how Chris had. Justin had always had the vague idea skin was skin, but evidently he was wrong. Chris’ skin tasted a little saltier than JC’s with a slight tang Justin couldn’t really define, and he found himself wondering if everyone tasted differently.

Chris settled into the water next to Joey and Lance, giving each of them a kiss before he turned to watch the other two and then grinning when he saw JC wink at him while Justin kissed and nibbled at his neck.

After a moment Justin’s lips found the ticklish spot low on JC’s throat and JC chuckled as he squirmed away, slipping his hands up under Justin’s shirt. "You liked that, huh?"

Justin lifted his head then to grin at JC, running his hands lightly over JC’s ass. "Oh yeah, babe, you were so hot."

JC smiled at Justin, stroking his back and sounding amused as he asked, "What about Lance and Chris?"

"Well," Justin said with a little grin, "I can’t truthfully say I’ve never wanted anyone but you anymore.."

JC laughed softly and grabbed the hem of Justin’s shirt, pulling up on it as Justin automatically stepped back and ducked a bit to make it easier for him to remove it. "I told you that you’d want somebody else one of these days, and you said I was full of it. I guess I’m not as wrong as you thought, huh?"

Justin grinned a little wider and stepped in close again as JC dropped his t-shirt. "No, but you were still full of it." Justin moved his hands to either side of JC’s waist, not at all surprised when JC did the same, letting his fingers slide under the waistband of Justin’s sweats.

JC chuckled and agreed softly, "Not long after that, yeah."

JC’s lips met Justin’s then and the three in the hot tub watched as they kissed, Justin’s hands roaming over JC’s body while JC slid one hand into the back of Justin’s sweats. Justin made a soft noise and moved against JC, quite obviously enjoying what JC was doing and wanting more, and JC moved the hand in Justin’s pants down a bit further. Justin moved against JC again more insistently then, and soon was rubbing his body slowly against JC’s as they kissed, both of them obviously in no real hurry.

Chris elbowed Lance then, brushing Joey’s arm too as he leaned closer to them and whispered almost soundlessly, "Am I seeing what I think I’m seeing?"

Lance put a hand on Chris’ knee and gave it a squeeze, grinning as he felt Joey’s chuckle against his back. "Looks that way sweetheart," Lance replied softly. "Don’t distract them."

Chris grinned back at him and then looked back over at the couple just as Justin made a soft, low noise and ended their kiss to nuzzle behind JC’s ear while JC began to kiss and nibble his way down Justin’s neck. Justin moaned softly a moment later as the hand in his pants moved slightly, then he closed his eyes as JC started kissing his way down Justin’s body. JC explored Justin’s chest and nipples with his lips and tongue then while the hand in Justin’s sweats slowly stroked sensitive skin just enough to leave Justin making soft noises and wanting more. JC finally realized Justin’s knees were about to buckle after a few minutes though, so he moved both hands to Justin’s hips to steady him, grinning as he continued slowly kissing and licking his way down Justin’s body.

Justin opened his eyes a few moments later and looked down to watch as JC left a damp trail down his stomach, his hands lightly running over JC’s shoulders. JC knelt at his feet then and looked up into Justin’s eyes, smiling as he hooked his thumbs in the waistband of Justin’s sweats and then pulled them down. JC held on to the sweats as Justin stepped out of them and then tossed them aside and grinned wickedly at Justin just before he leaned forward to nibble delicately at the shallow crease at the top of his thigh where JC knew he was ticklish.

Justin was standing with his back mostly towards the three in the hot tub, but they weren’t about to complain about Justin blocking the view just when things were getting really interesting. They couldn’t see what JC was doing but they had made the obvious conclusion when JC knelt and leaned in close, so they were all surprised when Justin laughed, moving away a bit as he said, "Josh, quit! Tickling’s not fair, you’re still wearing way too many clothes."

Chris’ eyes went wide then at the very idea of seeing JC naked, and when Justin gracelessly dropped to his knees in front of JC he gave the three in the hot tub an eyeful, making Chris grin as he fought the urge to make a comment about the hickey at the crease where Justin’s ass met his thigh.

JC laughed softly. "Baby, all’s fair." His blue eyes sparkled with amusement as he went on, "And you know all you have to do if you want me to get rid of my pants is to say so."

Justin grinned at JC and said, "So." Joey and Lance both chuckled at that, earning an elbow from Chris and grins from JC and Justin, then Justin looked at JC again as he said, "You know they want you out of those sweats just as bad as I do, babe."

JC blushed slightly but he was still grinning as he leaned in to kiss Justin again, his hands roaming over smooth, firm skin while Justin untied the drawstring on JC’s sweats. Justin eased the pants down JC’s hips then, not as all surprised when JC shifted enough to let him slide them past his knees and then all the way to his ankles and off. Justin began stroking JC’s body again then, taking over their kiss with JC’s full cooperation and soon drawing soft noises from him as he easily lifted JC to pull him closer. JC immediately slid his hands up Justin’s chest, urging him backwards, but Justin chuckled slightly into their kiss and then lifted JC up again and twisted, turning them around and laying JC down on his back in one easy motion.

Justin grinned down at JC’s surprised face as he moved one of his knees in between JC’s thighs, then he ducked his head to start exploring JC’s body with his mouth, starting just above where JC’s necklace laid against his throat and speaking softly between light, teasing kisses and nips. "You ... are so hot ... I can’t ... decide ... if I want you ... t’make love ... t’me ... or if I wanna ... make love ... t’you ... first."

The three in the hot tub exchanged wide-eyed looks, thinking that things were fast going past what they’d expected, but none of them wanted to complain and they only stared at each other a moment before going back to watching JC and Justin again. JC was beautiful enough all three of them would have wanted to watch even if he were doing nothing but sleeping, so as far as they were concerned watching him make love with Justin would be great.

JC moved restlessly under Justin’s kisses, stroking Justin’s arms as he answered, "Whatever you want baby, you know I’m eas— God, do that again."

Justin chuckled and put his mouth to JC’s nipple to suck gently at it again, this time lingering to lick and nibble while JC arched up against him and made a soft, low noises. Justin moved over to his other nipple to give it similar attention while JC held on to Justin’s shoulders, moving slowly against him with his eyes closed until Justin suddenly lifted his head to grin at JC. "So I get to choose?"

JC stopped moving and blinked a couple of times, trying to clear his head a bit. Justin usually chose to do exactly what JC wanted and seemed to take his every whim as law, which of course made JC’s earlier worrying even more ridiculous, but JC didn’t connect the two. He knew letting Justin think he was in charge would make him give JC that cocky little grin that he loved though, so he grinned up at Justin as he asked, "Don’t you usually get to choose, baby?"

Justin’s eyebrows went up at that, then he grinned down at JC and said, "I hadn’t noticed. I’ll have to remember that."

JC chuckled then, but it quickly turned into a giggle when Justin started tickling him lightly, making JC squirm against him until finally JC gasped, "Justin! Quit!"

Justin stopped tickling him, still grinning. "But you said all’s fair, and you’re _fun_ to tickle. Especially," Justin paused to move against JC, making him lift his hips slightly in response as Justin went on, "when you’re naked."

JC snorted softly, trying not to grin as he looked up at Justin’s smug face. "Isn’t everything more fun naked?"

Joey laughed at that as Chris said incredulously, "I did not just hear that." JC and Justin both looked over towards the hot tub, grinning as Chris looked wide-eyed at Lance and said, "Babe, tell me I did not just hear our dear, _shy_ Joshua say everything is more fun naked."

Lance grinned at Chris. "Sorry sweetheart, I can’t lie to you."

Chris looked back over at JC and Justin then to see them both grinning at him, and after admiring the view a moment he said, "Well, it’s official. We’ve completely corrupted him." Chris paused a beat, then added, "Yay us!"

The other four all laughed.

 

 

 

After the others went outside, Mike and Charlie stayed in the kitchen to clean up and do the dishes, and when they were done they went into the den to watch a movie on the satellite system. Charlie got the remote for the simple reason Mike didn’t want it, and he flipped through channels while they both discussed anything that looked remotely interesting until they were finally back where they started, MTV2.

There was some hip-hop show on and they decided to leave it there long enough to watch a few videos, mostly out of curiosity since Justin liked a lot of this stuff and JC had said he even liked some, and if there was anything those two knew it was music. Mike and Charlie didn’t see much in the way of redeeming qualities in the first video which seemed to mostly be about some guy waking up in the morning with two women in his house and then being shamelessly spoiled by them both even though it had nothing to do with the lyrics of the song and the women obviously didn’t like each other. By the end of the second video they both agreed that the clothes were the worst part and showed a complete lack of good taste, especially the baby blue fur coat. Even Justin hadn’t gone that far, and he’d taken the baby blue thing well into the realm of the ridiculous.

"More channels than I care to think about on this thing, and still absolutely nothing on," Charlie said softly as he leaned comfortably against Mike’s side, sounding amused.

Mike chuckled and rubbed Charlie’s side with one hand. "Yeah, but what we’re watching is worse than nothing."

Charlie laughed softly and lifted the remote without otherwise moving, offering it to Mike. " _You_ find something, then! There ain’t a thing on." Mike took the remote with a sigh and Charlie rested his hand on Mike’s stomach, settling his cheek a bit more comfortably against Mike’s chest.

"I know," Mike said, "but anything has to be better than this." He paused a moment to watch the next video, one that seemed to be nothing more than some guy walking past dozens of scantily dressed girls, before he snorted and finished, "Trash." He looked at the remote in the dim light from the TV and found the ‘guide’ button to begin flipping through channels again, going much faster now that they’d been through them all once. "Well," he said after flipping through about half of the channels, this time looking to see what was on next, "we’ve both seen it a dozen times but ‘ _Gleaming the Cube_ _’_ is always good, and it’s on in about ten minutes."

Charlie shrugged slightly and murmured, "It’s just as good as anything else that’s on, I guess. Probably better than most." Mike put it on the right channel and then dropped the remote on the couch to rest his hand on top of Charlie’s on his stomach and wait for the movie.

Mike looked down with a smile when ‘ _Gleaming the Cube_ _’_ finally started, not at all surprised to see Charlie was sound asleep, and he picked up the remote to turn down the volume before he settled in to watch the movie. There was a lot of good music in it and some great skateboard scenes, and Mike knew that if Charlie was awake he might even have gotten him to admit Christian Slater looked good decked out as a skateboarding punk. Mike grinned, thinking that Charlie had always been fascinated by skaters and liked a lot of the clothes they wore, and that now Charlie could wear them himself if he wanted to without feeling like a weirdo. Chris wore skate clothes all the time, as did a lot of the crew, so it wouldn’t be unusual for Charlie or even Mike to wear them too.

Mike was grinning and watching as Slater did the little cross-under-the-moving-semi trick when the cordless phone across the room phone rang quietly, making Charlie mumble and tighten his arms around him. The ringer on the phone seemed to be turned way down, and as it rang a second time Mike had the fleeting thought he never would have heard it if he hadn’t turned the TV down to let Charlie sleep. Mike gently shook Charlie’s shoulder then and said, "Lemme up, baby. I gotta get that."

Charlie sat up, looking around sleepily as he mumbled, "Get what?"

"The phone," Mike replied as he stood, then he crossed the room to the phone to pick it up on the fourth ring. "Hello?"

"Who is this?" a familiar-seeming female voice asked after a short pause.

"Who were you trying to reach, ma’am?" Mike asked, not about to say anything more until he had some idea who was on the other end of the line.

The woman snorted softly, sounding just a little amused as she said, "Well, Lance _usually_ answers the phone, but sometimes Chris or Justin will. Is this Mike, or Charlie?"

"Mike," Mike said, looking confused. "Who is this?"

"Joanna," she said, no longer sounding amused. "And I need to talk to Lance."

Mike turned to look at Charlie, smiling when he saw Charlie had curled up with his head on the arm of the couch to watch the TV with his eyes only half open. He’d be asleep again in a few minutes, Mike was sure of it. "They’re uhm, kind of busy right now. Can I have him call you back?"

"No Mike, it can’t wait," Joanna said firmly. "Go knock on the door and tell him I have to talk to him right now. He knows I wouldn’t bother him unless it was important."

"Okay," Mike said, starting towards the sliding glass door, "but they’re out in the hot tub."

Joanna laughed mirthlessly. "Oh joy! He’s going to be _so_ unthrilled, but this just can’t wait."

Mike frowned thinking that Joanna sounded odd, and then he opened the door. "Okay, gimme a minute." He stepped out and shut the door, taking the phone away from his face as he called, "Guys?"

The five in the hot tub were talking quietly about how they’d spend the next day when they heard Mike call them and exchanged a surprised look. Mike and Charlie had both made it plain they wouldn’t bother them when they were enjoying a little time together, so they knew it must be something important.

"Come on out, Mike," Lance said. "What do you need?"

"Telephone for you, boss. Joanna says it’s too important to wait," Mike replied as he quickly walked to the stairs, lifting the phone back to his ear as he added, "Just a sec, Jo."

The guys exchanged worried looks, all thinking the same thing: Joanna could handle anything that came up usually, especially at midnight, so it must be a major problem.

"Thanks, Mike," Joanna replied.

"No problem," Mike answered as he went down the stairs, then he watched as Lance crossed the hot tub towards him, leaning against the side next to where Justin happened to be sitting with JC leaning back against his chest. Mike bent down to hand Lance the phone and Lance gave him a quick grateful look as he immediately put it to his ear.

"What’s wrong? Is everyone okay?" Lance asked, then looked down at the deck in front of him and frowned slightly.

"We’ve got a problem, boss, but I guess I’d better start at the beginning. I spoke to Laurie in personnel, and she said transferring Melinda out was no problem, she just needed to fax me a couple forms for you to sign. Since you guys are out on that island already, I turned on the fax machine and went to supper with Michelle and Julie thinking I’d run them out to you tomorrow, and then after supper we went to one of the night clubs here in town to dance a little." Joanna sounded halfway ashamed that she’d been out having fun, but she didn’t pause in telling him what had happened. "Well, when I got back a little bit ago Melinda was waiting for me, and she was pretty pissed. She was messing around while I was gone and saw the faxes, and she wanted to know why there were transfer papers with her name all over them, and started making all sorts of threats."

Lance listened with a sinking feeling as Joanna paused to take a deep breath and then went on. "She says she’s going to out you guys if you transfer her, boss, and that it doesn’t matter that it’s a lie because the media will love to hear one of your oldest employees slinging mud at you."

Lance was silent a moment, thinking, and then asked, "Where is she now?"

"In her room, and she’d have to come past me to leave unless she jumps off the balcony. I didn’t want her to do something stupid, so I sort of took up residence outside her door to talk to you."

Joanna sounded a bit sheepish, but Lance nodded. "Good idea. What sort of threats are we talking here, Jo?"

Joey and Chris both moved across the tub to be closer to Lance, JC, and Justin then, and incidentally closer to Mike as well. They all, Mike included, wondered which of the ladies they knew was being threatened, and Justin’s arms tightened around JC without him even noticing it as he worried about his mother. JC gently rubbed Justin’s arms as he watched Lance talk, more than a little worried himself but trying not to show it. Crazy fans couldn’t often get to them, but they all knew their families were vulnerable and worried about them.

"Mostly just that she would tell the press and Jive that you’re all gay," Joanna replied, "but she mentioned calling Justin’s mother and yours too."

Lance snorted softly. "Calling our parents wouldn’t do her a bit of good, my mother wouldn’t believe her and Justin’s mother already knows. What does she want?"

That made it obvious it was a woman making the threats, and the comment about Lance’s mother not believing something Justin’s already knew also told them it was probably about the fact none of them were straight. Justin relaxed then and JC’s face lost it’s worried look, both of them thinking they could get through any threats to them while Joey and Chris exchanged a level look. They’d expected this, just not quite so soon.

"Pretty much just keeping her job." Joanna still sounded a little worried as she asked, "What do you want me to do, boss?"

Lance sighed, looking down at the deck for a moment before he said, "Call me back in a few minutes, okay Jo? We need to talk about this before you do anything."

"I understand, boss. I’ll call back in five minutes, unless she tries to leave or something, but I don’t think she will. She was pretty confident you guys would do whatever she wanted." Joanna’s tone was dry as she went on, "I know for sure that if she does say anything it’s a breach of her contract, for what that’s worth."

Lance made a face. "I doubt she cares about that right now, but that’s good to know. I’ll talk to you again in a minute."

"Sure, boss," Joanna said, then hung up.

Lance switched off the cordless and then turned to look at the others as Chris asked, "Well? Who is threatening us, and why?"

"Melinda," Lance replied. "She was being nosy while Jo was at supper and found the forms for her transfer, and when Joanna got back she started making threats. She says if we don’t let her keep her job she’s going to out us to Jive and the press, and that she’s going to tell our families too. She doesn’t really know anything though, ‘cause she told Joanna it didn’t matter that it was a lie, the press would eat it up anyway."

"Isn’t that like, very against the non-disclosure contracts we have?" Justin asked, frowning.

Lance looked at Justin quickly, surprised and momentarily speechless at finding out Justin even knew what a non-disclosure contract _was._ Lance was usually the one to give the others any paperwork they needed to sign and Justin never bothered to read any of it before putting his name wherever Lance told him to, so Lance was amazed that he knew what their employees had signed. 

"Who the hell does she think she is?!" Chris asked incredulously, making Lance look quickly to him. "She _never_ does her job, she’s a complete waste of space on tour, and she thinks she can threaten us for _transferring_ her?! We ought to fire her lazy ass!"

Joey nodded, frowning as Lance said, "I know, Chris. But if we do there is a pretty good chance we’re coming out right now, whether we want to or not. Everyone knows she’s been with us for years, so if she starts spouting half-truths a lot of people will believe her."

"Your fans won’t," Mike said suddenly, drawing five surprised looks because they had forgotten he was there again. "Not many I’ve spoken to really like Melinda, and a lot of people think she’s just riding around on tour with you for the fun of it. I mean, anyone who’s been on the ‘net very long knows how easy it would be for her to post a note on the message board every week if nothing else, and she often doesn’t say anything for a month or more and then just repeats what Dani has already said, or posts things we already knew from other message boards or even MTV. Most of us know to go ask at FuMan if there’s a really strong rumor because Dani usually takes time to answer us or makes sure somebody does for her."

Lance looked up at Mike in surprise as Chris asked, "You’ve been to the FuMan boards?"

Mike laughed and nodded, crouching easily next to the hot tub so they wouldn’t have to look up so far. "Oh yeah, and a hundred others besides. There’s all sorts of things floating around online about you guys, from transcripts of things you really said to faked pictures and interviews. Your fans are often more than a little obsessed and funny as hell." Mike grinned suddenly and added, "Some of us _have_ been known to make fun of you a bit though."

"So you don’t think people would believe Melinda?" Lance asked, pulling the conversation back to the problem at hand as he made a mental note to have Mike tell him more about the online fan community. Lance had surfed around some checking out some sites, but he’d not really gotten into it once he realized most of it was decidedly teeny with way too much ‘Mary Sue’ fiction to suit him. It was bad enough that girls asked them to sign their underwear, he was not at all interested in reading the stories they wrote about what they would do with him or his friends if given a chance.

Mike shook his head. "Nah, she’s a slacker, anyone who checks out your website before I fix it can see that. Jive probably wouldn’t even believe her, and if they did they couldn’t really do anything to you. They need you more than you need them."

Lance looked thoughtful at that, and was surprised when JC spoke up. "We can’t do what she wants, guys, no matter what she winds up doing. If we do then everyone who wants a free ride will try to blackmail us."

Chris nodded as Joey said, "C’s right, and so is Mike. Jive needs us more than we need them."

"Remind her about the contract she signed and fire her, Scoop, without the usual severance package," Justin added, making Lance, Joey, and Chris look at him in surprise.

"Infant, what do you know about contracts and severance packages?" Chris asked, looking more than a little surprised.

Justin snorted. "Chris, I’m not a kid anymore, no matter how much you might like to think so. I have my own production company that I actually even help run when I have time, and I _do_ pay attention sometimes in those boring-assed meetings that _you_ usually spend thinking up ways to get in trouble when we get out of there. I know all about our usual severance package and contracts ‘cause I talked to Johnny about them forever and a day ago and I use the same ones at Tennman. They’re iron-clad and very specific, and she’d better be damn careful or that ditz is gonna be buyin’ my momma another Harley."

JC chuckled and the others looked at him in surprise, then Chris said, "You don’t seem surprised to hear the kid talking business."

JC grinned. "Why would I be? Justin’s dense sometimes, yeah, but my baby has a good head on his shoulders. He just needs a bit more practice at stopping to use it."

"Hey!" Justin said, laughing. "What about you, Mr. ‘My PA Sold My Gymshorts On Ebay’? At least I got my girls to sign decent contracts before I let them in my house!"

JC turned his head to look at Justin, grinning. "I wouldn’t trust _anyone_ in my home, baby, I don’t care what they sign. And besides, she stole them out of my Jeep."

"Which is almost as old as I am but you still insist on driving it, even though you’re a multi-millionaire," Justin added with a grin, taking off on a tangent as he often did when he talked to JC.

JC nodded as he leaned back against Justin’s chest again. "Yup. No reason to get a new car, my Jeep does just fine the two or three weeks a year I’m home to use it."

Mike laughed then but Chris just shook his head in mock-disgust while Joey and Lance chuckled. It was a familiar argument, one the other three had all heard a thousand times. Justin thought there was no point to having money if you didn’t spend it on family, fast cars, killer stereo systems, and cool vintage clothes in that order, but JC saw no reason waste money on a car he’d hardly ever drive or on ‘used’ clothes, even though he agreed about the stereo. When the two best friends were on a break from touring, Justin usually wound up looking like he was wearing someone’s old college clothes and drove a car worth more than most people’s homes while JC looked like something straight out of a bad acid trip half the time and drove a car worth about the same as what Justin regularly paid for a pair of ‘vintage’ jeans, but the stereo system and CDs in that old Jeep that were easily worth three times as much as the vehicle itself, if not quite a bit more.

Of course, when the guys were together on tour the clothing mingled. JC might wear a pair of those ‘vintage’ jeans of Justin’s which were so comfortable with a ruffled shirt worthy of a Prince video and a pair of Chris’ goofy glasses, while Justin wore leather pants he’d snitched from JC’s bag that would invariably be too tight and accompanied by a t-shirt older than he was and a pair of Lance’s cool aviator shades. Well, unless Justin had sorted laundry recently; then JC wouldn’t show up in ruffles or fur for a few days and Justin would wear Chris and Joey’s perverted shirts until they realized he had kidnapped them all again.

 

 


	53. Chapter 53

 

~~~~53~~~~

 

Lance was just about say something about JC’s Jeep – he agreed with Justin completely that JC needed a newer car, if only because a newer one would be safer – when the phone he’d put on the edge of the hot tub rang. He turned to pick it up, pressing the talk button and then putting it to his ear as he said, "Hello."

"Hey, boss, it’s just me again," Joanna said, sounding a little tired. "You guys decide what to do?"

"Hey, Jo," Lance replied. "Yeah, we have, do you want to tell her or would you like me to?"

"I think it would be best if you did, boss. She'll just try to argue with me," Joanna replied, then paused a second before she asked a little hesitantly, "What did you decide?"

"That’s she’s fired, without the severance package." Justin grinned at that and Lance smiled at him as he went on, "It’ll be more work for you, but she pushed us too far by trying to blackmail us."

Joanna was quiet a moment, then said, "Boss, I don’t mind the extra paperwork a bit, but she might really cause trouble for you guys."

"I know she may try, Jo, but she can’t really hurt us. If she does say anything it’ll just be another rumor and we’ve squashed rumors before," Lance replied, sounding confident even though he wasn’t, not really. He saw what all the others were saying and agreed with them, but a small part of him still thought this was a very bad idea.

"I hope you guys know what you’re doing," Joanna said then, sounding anything but sure that they did. "Lemme get her."

"No hurry," Lance said, "I can wait."

"Shouldn’t take but a minute, the light’s still on in her room." Lance heard Joanna knock on Melinda’s door, then a pause before it opened and he heard Joanna say, "Someone would like to talk to you."

"Okay. Come on in," Lance heard Melinda say, slightly muffled, and then there was a pause as Jo handed her the phone before Melinda spoke much more clearly, "Hello?"

"Melinda, this is Lance," he said without preamble. "We don’t appreciate being threatened. You’re fired."

Melinda spluttered, then said incredulously, "You can’t fire me, I’ll tell the world you’re gay!"

"Who cares?" Lance asked. "We’ve tried to be nice Melinda, we’ve given you chance after chance to start doing your job and you never even _tried_ so we finally got fed up and decided to transfer you back home instead of firing you like we should have done to begin with. Then you had the unmitigated _gall_ to threaten us, so you’re fired. Without the usual severance package. And don’t ask us for references, either. You’ve never really done your job, you don’t listen to us when we ask you to do something, and you give out information you aren’t supposed to all the time."

Melinda was silent for a long moment, and sounded confused when she finally said, "But if I tell Jive that you’re gay, you’ll lose everything. Don’t you care?"

Lance snorted. "Even if you had some shred of proof – which I am quite sure you don’t – Jive won’t do anything to us because we’re the biggest thing they’ve got and they know it. They know all about Backstreet and you don’t see the Boys begging on a street corner, now do you?"

Chris chuckled and Lance winked at him as Melinda asked incredulously, "The Backstreet Boys are gay?!"

Lance could hear Joanna’s sudden laughter in the background as he laughed at Melinda, then he said, "Y’know, you really should pay a little bit more attention to the music biz if you’re gonna pretend to work in it. If you had used your head you’d just be being sent to a cushy desk job at the compound right now, instead of out of work and not likely to be hired again by anyone once they hear we had to fire you."

Melinda was silent for a moment again and then she said softly, "Would it help if I told you I never would have really done it?"

Lance heard Joanna say, "Oh please!" and he snorted again, disgusted. "No. You tried to _blackmail us_ , Melinda. Besides the fact that is _not_ the way to win friends and influence people, it’s also something you can’t smooth over by saying you _didn_ _’_ _t meant it_."

Chris rolled his eyes at that and Justin muttered, "Stupid woman."

"I—I  was desperate," Melinda said, sounding like she was about to cry. "I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you, any of you." She was silent a moment then mumbled, "I guess I have to pack. G’bye."

Melinda handed the phone back to Joanna then, and even though Joanna didn’t put the phone to her ear Lance clearly heard Joanna say, "Melinda, don’t expect sympathy from any of the rest of us, you brought this on yourself. I don’t know how you could even _think_ about threatening to hurt the nicest guys you’ll ever meet."

"But I didn’t mean it!" Melinda said, her voice making it obvious she was crying. "I’m sorry!"

"Yeah, you are," Joanna replied disdainfully. "You’re a sorry excuse for a personal assistant and a sorry friend to five men who have all taken care of you for _years_ even though you never did a single thing to earn it. You ought to be ashamed of yourself." Joanna put the phone to her ear then and ignored Melinda’s sobbing as she started towards the door, saying, "I’m back, boss. Anything else you need me to do tonight?"

"No, Jo, we’re fine," Lance said then was quiet a moment before he added, "Thank you."

Lance heard the sound of a door closing and then Joanna said softly, "No reason to thank me, boss. I just told her the truth. Call my cell number if you need anything, I’ll be in ‘Chelle’s room."

Lance suddenly made a decision. "Jo? Do you really think we can trust Michelle?"

Chris, Joey, Justin, and JC looked at each other, wondering what prompted that question, then looked back at Lance to see what he’d say next. Over the years they’d all gotten good at figuring out what was going on just by hearing Lance’s end of a phone conversation, and they almost always stopped whatever they were doing to listen when he was on the phone.

Joanna was quiet a moment, wondering what he was getting to, and then said, "Yeah, boss, I know you can. She’d never do anything to hurt you guys, she thinks you walk on water."

"Then draw up another contract for her just like yours and bring her with you tomorrow when you bring Melinda’s severance papers so she can meet Mike and Charlie. We need people we can trust and I’m tired of wondering who is with Jive and who’s with us," Lance said, grinning when Chris gave him a thumbs up and Joey nodded, smiling, while JC and Justin just grinned.

"You— You’d hire ‘Chelle?!" Joanna asked, incredulous. "Just because I said you can trust her?"

Lance chuckled. "Yeah Jo, we all trust you and your opinion. Besides, if you two have been together two years, it’s not like you don’t know her well enough to tell if we can trust her."

Joanna laughed. "Thank you! What do you want me to put on the paperwork as the position she’s been hired for, PA or makeup or what?"

"Well, she helps you quite a lot doesn’t she?" Lance asked, still grinning at how much happier Joanna sounded.

"Yeah, she does," Joanna replied, sounding a wryly amused. "She says all the time that she knows I won’t take time off until it’s all done and she won’t have as much fun alone, so she’s going to help me whether I like it or not."

Lance laughed. "Leave it up to her then. We can find more makeup people or she can do that too if she just enjoys the job."

"She likes it boss, I think she’ll want to do both," Joanna said, amused. "She likes getting to hang out with you guys before a show, she says it’s the most fun she’s ever had working."

Lance chuckled. "She’s welcome to, and so are you when you can find time. Maybe with Mike and Charlie helping you two ladies, you’ll be able to get done early for a change."

Joanna giggled. "I wouldn’t bet on it, boss! I’d better let you go. Enjoy the rest of your evening."

Lance grinned. "Oh I will, have no fear. Same to you Jo, g’night."

"Good night," Joanna said, then hung up.

Lance turned off the phone and offered it to Mike with a grin. "Thanks for bringing it out. Charlie’s probably wondering what happened to you."

Mike chuckled. "Nah, he was half asleep on the couch when I came out here, by now he’s dead to the world I’m sure."

Lance laughed as Chris grinned at Mike and said, "Sounds like somebody isn’t letting him get enough sleep!"

Mike grinned. "He gets just as much sleep as I do, and I’d bet we both get more sleep than you."

"I’m sure," Joey said, smirking, and the others all laughed.

Mike stood to move towards the stairs, then paused to look back with a smile. "By the way, Charlie and I are going to head to bed, but I’ll put towels in the den for you guys before we go."

Chris laughed. "Thanks, towels would be good."

Mike grinned at them and then continued up the steps and out of sight, leaving the five of them alone again and sitting much closer together than they’d been earlier, with Lance on one side of JC and Justin and Joey and Chris on the other side.

Lance smiled as he watched Joey and Chris look at each other for a long moment, then Chris moved over to sit next to Lance, grinning widely enough that Lance finally had to ask, "What are you so happy about?"

"Well," Chris said, "I’m in a hot tub with you, and naked, and you’re going to be too in just a minute."

Lance’s eyes widened and he started to say, "Chris, don’t yo—" but he didn’t even finish the third word before Chris was under the water and had already grabbed his boxers, and when Lance kicked at him it only made it easier for him to pull them off. Chris appeared above water again right in front of Lance a few seconds later, smirking as he held up Lance’s dripping boxers, and Lance immediately splashed water in his face. "You’re gonna get it for that, Kirkpatrick!"

Chris grinned wickedly and tossed Lance’s underwear out of the water, and then he made a come and get me gesture as he began backing across the hot tub. "Promises, promises."

Lance snorted and pushed off to go after him, trying not to grin. "You think that sounds fun, huh?"

Chris’ grin widened just a bit as he stopped with his back against the far side of the hot tub. "You gettin’ me in a hot tub? It’s a great idea." Lance did laugh at that and moved to sit astride Chris’ knees with both hands busy well under the surface of the water, drawing a soft groan from Chris before the older man said, "Mmm, yeah, baby. Fuck me."

Lance leaned in close to put his lips by Chris’s ear then, his hands suddenly moving up to Chris’ chest as he said, "Dream on," then he pushed off with a smirk and moved over to sit by JC and Justin again.

Chris just stared after him a moment, blinking a few times before he said, "Well shit!"

The other four all laughed and then Joey said, "You should have tried coaxing him out of his pants instead of stealin’ ’em, Critter. Lance likes sex in a hot tub just as much as anyone else does, he would’ve cooperated if you played your cards right."

Chris looked at Joey for a minute and then looked Lance. "Can I start over?"

Lance snorted, still grinning. "Nope, you messed up your chance. Maybe Joe’ll play with you."

Chris looked hopefully back at Joey who laughed and said, "Hey man, _I_ didn’t mess up my chance with him yet."

Chris’ face fell. "It sucks to be me."

JC and Justin both laughed at that and then JC said, "Aww, poor Chris, he’s not gonna get laid in the hot tub."

Chris suddenly brightened, grinning at JC. "I’ll just watch you two, that’s almost as much fun as doing it myself."

"You already saw enough," JC said immediately, trying to ignore the fact his face was flaming.

Chris’ grin widened into a smirk. "But I wanted to see him do y—"

"You’re outta luck," Justin said, cutting  Chris off in mid-word, grinning. "We only do one show a night, dude, and then only if you get real lucky."

JC chuckled and nodded, still blushing. "Yeah, what he said. Besides, it’s our turn to watch y’all."

Lance chuckled and looked past JC and Justin at Joey. "I think that was a hint, Joe-bear."

Joey grinned at Lance and then moved over to sit by Chris as he said, "Sounds that way, babe."

Lance grinned and followed Joey, surprising them both by settling astride Chris’ lap again and putting his hands on Chris’ shoulders. "Think you can be nice this time, Critter?"

Joey grinned and watched as Chris nodded quickly, his eyes wide. "Whatever you want baby."

Lance pretended the think a second, then slowly slid his hands down Chris’ chest as he purred softly, "Hmm... How about you and Joe do me?"

Lance looked questioningly at Joey, who grinned. "You know I _never_ refuse a chance at gettin’ some Bass booty."

Lance looked back at Chris who nodded and then added with a sudden smirk, "It’s the best we’ve ever seen, and we’ve seen a lot of people shakin’ their booty over the last ten years."

JC and Justin both laughed at that and Lance gave a theatrical sigh, pretending to pout. "The men I love want me for my ass."

Chris ran his hands over the ass in question, grinning.  "Nah baby, we’d love you just the same if you had a scrawny little butt."

"Yeah," Joey said with a grin, "but that gorgeous ass of yours is a definite bonus."

"And we both intend to take advantage of it as often as humanly possible," Chris added, grinning.

Lance chuckled at that and shook his head. "You two are incorrigible."

Chris and Joey both grinned at him and said, "Thank you," in perfect unison, making JC and Justin both laugh again.

 

 

 

It was nearly two am when the five of them finally made it into the den, tired and a little cold from walking around wet and shirtless but still joking quietly as they picked up towels off the couch to dry the rest of the way off with. Lance didn’t stop to dry off, instead carrying the bundle of clothes they hadn't put back on into the little laundry room next to the kitchen before he walked back into the den to get a towel. Chris and Joey had already finished drying off and Joey was standing by the couch watching JC dry his hair, completely unaware Justin and Chris were watching him from opposite sides with almost identical grins. Lance walked over and took Chris’ towel to begin rubbing at his own hair with it as he grinned and watched the others, sure Justin and Chris were up to something.

"Hey, babe," Justin said when JC was done, "I think you forgot something."

JC looked a bit confused and Chris nodded, grinning. "Yeah, you sure did, C."

Joey looked suspiciously at Chris then, wondering what he was up to, and Lance watched with a grin as Justin caught JC’s eye and nodded towards Joey.

JC grinned suddenly as he realized what Justin meant. "Hey yeah, you guys are right, I did.” He walked around the coffee table to stand a couple of feet away from Joey and give him a little grin.

Joey’s looked at JC then, his eyebrows going up. "Did you need somethin’, C?"

"Sort of," JC said, his grin fading slightly as he stepped a little closer and gave Joey a hopeful look. "If you’d like to, I mean."

Joey looked confused but smiled slightly. "If I’d like to what? C’mon dude, spit it out. I can’t read your mind."

JC blushed a bit at that and gave Joey a little smile. "Uhm. If you’d like to, well, kiss me?"

Joey’s smile widened and he stepped forward, closing the distance between them to rest his hands on JC’s waist. "Like you have to ask."

JC blushed a bit more but his smile widened a little. "Well yeah, Joe, I do. I mean, I couldn’t just walk over here and kiss you, that wouldn’t be right ‘cause maybe you don’t want to and—"

"Josh," Joey interrupted him mid-ramble, chuckling slightly, and when JC broke off in surprise, Joey kissed him.

JC’s lips parted a moment later in silent invitation and Joey didn’t hesitate to deepen the kiss, stroking JC’s tongue with his while JC’s hands began to slowly roam up Joey’s solid back. Joey kept his hands on JC’s waist while they kissed, knowing JC wouldn’t mind if he let them roam but uncomfortable with the idea. Joey had finally admitted to himself that he wanted JC more than he really felt like he should, and he knew it would be all too easy to forget himself if he wasn’t careful.

Joey was the first to pull back for just that reason, and JC’s expression was slightly confused as Joey gave him a soft smile. "They’re right y’know, you’re beautiful."

JC blushed, smiling and shaking his head slightly as he looked down. "No, I’m—"

Joey lifted a hand to tip JC’s chin back up so JC would look at him as he said softly, "Yes, you are, Josh. You’re one of the most beautiful men I’ve ever seen, inside and out. Okay?" Joey smiled at him, absently cupping JC’s jaw in his hand and stroking JC’s cheek with his thumb as he waited for JC to answer him.

JC’s blue eyes sparkled and he returned Joey’s smile, leaning into the gentle caress. "Better than okay. One more reason I’m one of the luckiest guys ever."

Joey chuckled and gave JC a quick kiss before he let him go, moving to sit on the couch. "No, Josh, we are."

JC gave Joey a sweet smile and picked up the towel he’d dropped on the couch, draping it around his neck.

Chris smirked at Joey then and said, "Y’know, Justin didn’t get a kiss from you either, Joe, or from Lance."

Justin blushed bright red then and looked at his feet as he mumbled something they couldn’t really hear while JC grinned and nodded. "You’re right, Chris, and I know he wants to."

Justin kept his eyes on his feet and said, "S’okay, y’all don’t gotta."

Joey grinned at Lance and made an ‘after you’ gesture.

Lance winked at Joey as he crossed the room to stand in front of Justin, looking up into his flaming face and dark blue eyes with a little smile. When Justin didn’t look at him after a moment he stepped even closer and rested his hands on Justin’s waist as he said, "What if we want to, Curly?"

Justin still didn’t meet Lance’s green eyes. "Why would you?"

Lance chuckled softly. "Well, it might be because you’re sweet and fun, though I guess it could just as easily be that sexy little grin of yours..." Lance trailed off and paused a second trying hard not to grin at how very red Justin’s face was, and then Justin finally met his eyes just as Lance went on softly, "But I think it’s mostly because I love you."

Justin rested his hands on Lance’s waist with a little smile then as he said just as quietly, "I love you, too."

Lance smiled up at Justin for a long moment, watching Justin’s blush fade before he asked, "Well? Aren’t you going to kiss me?"

Justin blushed again and nodded as he leaned down to kiss Lance, just barely brushing his lips against Lance’s before he looked into Lance’s surprised green eyes for a second with a little smile and then kissed him again. Justin’s lips lingered against Lance’s for a long moment that time but he didn’t try to deepen the kiss at all until Lance made a soft impatient noise and licked at Justin’s lips. Justin grinned then and his lips parted, letting Lance explore his mouth while Justin slid his hands up Lance’s bare back. They kissed for several minutes, hands slowly exploring each other’s bodies, and when Justin’s hands finally slid down over his ass Lance moaned softly and moved even closer.

JC sat on the couch next to Joey then, giving him a smile and a kiss on the cheek before he settled comfortably against Joey’s shoulder to watch Justin and Lance just as Justin’s hands roamed back up to Lance’s waist and settled there.

Justin and Lance kissed until Justin felt hands on his chest and lifted his head to grin at Lance and ask, "Will that do?"

Lance smiled and slid his hands on up to lace his fingers together on the back of Justin’s neck, his green eyes sparkling. "Well, I guess that was oka—"

Justin laughed and lowered his head to kiss Lance again and cut off whatever else he was going to say, this time immediately using his tongue to gently part Lance’s lips. Justin lightly flicked his tongue against Lance’s and then licked at the roof of his mouth before he changed tactics completely to nibble and suck gently at Lance’s lower lip, slowly lifting his head. Lance made a low noise in his throat and leaned up to prolong the kiss even as he tightened his hands on Justin’s neck, pulling him back down and ignoring Justin’s chuckle as he licked at Justin’s lips to get him to open his mouth again.

Justin let Lance take over for a moment, parting his lips and letting Lance explore his mouth, then suddenly changed the angle of their kiss and sucked on Lance’s tongue, drawing a low growl from him. Justin chuckled again and then stroked his tongue against Lance’s as he slowly slid his hands down over Lance’s ass again before he pulled back slightly and began to gently nibble at Lance’s lower lip again. Justin finally pulled away completely after another moment, his dark blue eyes bright as he looked down at Lance with a smug little grin and waited for him to open his eyes and say something.

JC had to stifle a chuckle when he saw Justin’s face, knowing just what it was like to open your eyes after a kiss like that and see that smug grin. Justin loved to kiss at least as much as JC did, and JC had learned quickly that Justin had a definite talent for it. Whenever Justin kissed JC he made it obvious he had absolutely nothing on his mind but showing him how much he loved him, and JC knew it could be a little overwhelming.

Lance finally opened his green eyes and then smiled wryly up at Justin. "Okay, so Chris is right. You don’t need to practice."

Justin chuckled and gave him a quick kiss and a squeeze, then stepped back and watched him go over to sit on the couch next to Joey.

JC grinned and said, "He _does_ need practice, Scoop, just not at kissing. Justin could get a masters in kissing, and it’s not even what he’s best at."

Justin blushed but couldn’t help a grin as the other three looked at JC and then at him, each wondering what he did better than kissing. Chris and Lance had both been on the receiving end of Justin’s kisses and they both knew he was pretty good at it, so hearing he was even better at something else made them curious.

Chris was the one to finally ask, "Okay, so what does the kid do best?"

JC smirked. "Me."

Justin laughed, his face flaming, and changed the subject. "Y’know, it’s after two-thirty. Aren’t y’all tired yet?"

Chris grinned. "Aww, is Juppy in a hurry to go to bed? It’s early yet."

Justin snorted. "It isn’t when I’ve had sex se--"

"I’m ready for bed, baby," JC interrupted him as he stood quickly to walk over to Justin, his face suddenly a little pink. "We’ll never wake up in the morning."

Chris’ grin turned wicked. "Just a second, Josh. I wanna hear what the kid has to say."

JC’s blush deepened as Justin smirked at Chris and said, "You don’t really wanna know old man, you’d just be jealous."

Chris laughed, surprised. "Just go ahead and tell me Infant."

Justin’s smirk didn’t fade a bit. "Well, if you must know, we’ve had sex seven times in the last thirty hours or so and about half as many hours sleep. I wanna go see if I can get Josh to do me again, then I’m gonna use him for a pillow while I sleep for eight hours or so."

JC face was flaming by the time Justin got through the first sentence and he started towards the door to the kitchen as soon as Justin finished. "Baby, I am going to bed."

Justin started after him, grinning as Chris stared at them both and repeated soundlessly, "Seven?" his eyes wide. "I don’t believe it!" Chris said aloud suddenly just as JC reached the doorway, making him stop short to turn and give Chris a surprised look.

"You what?" Justin asked, his eyebrows all the way up and complete disbelief on his face.

"It’s just not possible, kid,” Chris said, “even if you are twenty and in better shape than I’ve ever been. A guy just can _not_ come seven times in one day!"

Joey chuckled, shaking his head as Lance giggled softly while Justin blushed and didn’t answer.

JC laughed at the look on Chris’ face. "Chris, he didn’t say he had. He said we’ve had sex seven times in the last day or so, there’s a difference. Justin’s only come five times."

Chris looked confused at that and blurted, "So you’ve come twice?"

JC tried hard to ignore his blush. "Well, now, I didn’t say that."

Justin snorted. "If you’re gonna tell him all about me, I guess I get to tell him you’ve come four times."

JC made a face at Justin. "And now that they know too much about both of us we can go to bed, right?" Justin nodded grinning again, and before Chris had a chance to say anything JC was gone, quickly followed by Justin.

Chris stood in the middle of the floor staring at the empty doorway for a full minute longer before he turned to look at Joey and Lance. "I missed something somewhere."

Lance chuckled again. "No you didn’t sweetheart, or at least you shouldn’t have, they were pretty straight with you." Joey chuckled then, making Lance laugh and correct himself. "Well, okay, not _straight,_ but you know what I meant."

Chris grinned. "Okay, so you explain it. Why is it every time one of them comes doesn’t count as sex?"

Lance smirked. "I would guess that sometimes they both come and other times they don’t, but it’s just a guess."

Joey chuckled and added, "Maybe they don’t count blow jobs, Critter. Why does it matter? You have sex as often as you want, you don’t have anything to be jealous of."

"I’m not jealous," Chris said quickly, walking over to the couch. "I’m just... Impressed. And curious."

"Curiosity killed the Critter," Justin said from the doorway sounding smug, and Chris whirled around to look at him as Justin asked, "Would you get us up for breakfast, Poof?"

"Sure," Lance answered with a grin. "You want up before I start cooking or when I get up or what?"

JC walked up next to Justin munching on a tomato like it was an apple then and Justin gave him a quick grin. "What do you think, babe?"

JC chewed thoughtfully, then swallowed and smiled at Lance. "When you’re ready to fix breakfast, please."

Lance nodded and then JC gave him a quick grin and took another bite of his tomato, turning to go as Chris said, "Wait a sec, Josh."

JC turned back with a sigh and a patient expression, then realized tomato juice was running down the back of his hand and licked it off before he looked up at Chris again. "Yeah?" JC was completely oblivious to the way four sets of eyes had watched him lick his hand, three of them wondering how it would feel for him to lick them like that while Justin just wished JC would answer Chris quickly.

"My curiosity is killin’ me, man. How is it you’ve had sex seven times, not nine? Does it just not count sometimes or what?" Chris asked looking lost.

JC rolled his eyes and then blushed a bit as he said, "I _knew_ that’d have to be the question. You answer him, baby. You’re the one who says we’ve had sex seven times."

Justin looked surprised and asked JC, "You don’t think so?"

JC laughed. "Baby, I don’t care, or count."

Lance chuckled as Chris said, "But you said you knew how many times Justin’s—"

"Yeah," JC interrupted him, "but that doesn’t mean we’ve had sex that many times."

"How can you come and not have sex, or have sex and not come?!" Chris asked, exasperated.

JC blushed and took a bite of the tomato while looking pointedly at Justin for him to answer.

Justin’s face flushed bright red as he said, "Well, um, sometimes when Josh makes love to me I sort of come more than once before he does, but I don’t think that counts as having sex twice." He looked at JC and asked, "Right?"

JC shrugged and swallowed, pausing again to lick off the juice that had run down his wrist before he said, "Don’t ask me, I’m not the one who wants to know."

Justin looked at Chris who was looking at JC with more than a little awe. " _Damn,_ Josh, what do you _do_ to the kid?"

JC almost choked on another mouthful of tomato, giving Chris a dirty look as he quickly swallowed. "Shit, man! I’ll do a lot for you but I am _not_ going to explain to you how I have sex! You already got to _watch,_ isn’t that enough?!"

Lance and Joey both started laughing and even Justin grinned as Chris said, "But Josh, you’ve got to know something I don’t."

JC gave Chris a level look. "You’re not gonna drop it this time either, are you?"

Chris looked sheepish. "I’d really like to know, Josh. That could be lots of fun."

JC made a face again and sighed, then said, "You’ve done Lance or Joe and made them come just from that, right?" He said it as though it was a very elementary thing and Chris nodded, then JC said, "Well, next time keep going and if you take your time, eventually they’ll come again."

Chris’ eyes went wide again. "That’s like, totally impossible."

JC snorted. "No, it’s not. I’ve done it."

"More than once," Justin added, looking smug while Joey chuckled.

"But when the guy you’re fucking," JC made a face and Chris rolled his eyes and went on, "sorry, ‘making love to’ comes, you do too. You like, can’t say ‘Oh, gee, I’ll wait until later’. He comes and you just sort of have to follow."

Justin chuckled and JC gave him a dirty look then looked back at Chris. "I guess it probably depends on how much, uh, control you have. Maybe you should take up yoga, it might help, I guess."

Justin smirked. "But don’t bet on it. I can do yoga and I can’t keep going either. I think it’s a Josh-only type thing."

JC blushed. "Baby, it’s not."

Justin’s eyebrows went up and he gave JC a grin. "Anyone ever do it to you, or have you done it to anyone else?" JC shook his head. "Anyone you know of ever do it?" JC shook his head again flushing even redder and then Justin’s grin widened. "So how do you know anyone but you can?"

JC opened his mouth to say something and then shut it, and he had just opened it again to speak when Lance chuckled and said, "Josh, I gotta go with Juppy on this one. It’s not impossible for you, but it may well be for anyone else. I’m sure I couldn’t do it."

Justin spoke up again, grinning. "Which is why I told Chris he didn’t wanna know to begin with."

JC made a face. "Good night, guys. This time I’m really going to bed."

Chris said, "But—"

"Night!" JC said firmly, turning and walking out of the room again.

"Damn," Chris said.

Justin grinned at Chris. "Look at the bright side, Critter. He’s never done it to anyone but me, so it could just be that I’m a complete slut."

Justin followed JC then while Lance and Joey both laughed and Chris just spluttered.

 

 


	54. Chapter 54

 

~~~~54~~~~

 

JC walked into their darkened room, flipping on the lamp before he sat on the bed and scooted back to lean against the headboard and finish his tomato. He took a bite and watched with a little grin as Justin walked in and then began moving their junk off the bed, piling it all in the floor in one corner of the room before he opened the sliding glass doors’ curtains so they could see the water from the bed. JC bit into the tomato again then, not really watching what he was doing, and made a little annoyed noise when juice ran down his chin and dripped onto his chest. He made a face at the tomato while he chewed like it was all it’s fault and was about to get up to go clean it off when Justin suddenly climbed on the bed and leaned over him to lick at the tomato juice on his chest.

JC couldn’t help but grin as he asked, "Baby, what are you doing?"

"Having a snack," Justin said, lifting his head long enough to give JC an impish grin before he leaned back down to suck at JC’s collarbone. Justin licked and nibbled up his neck after a moment even though there wasn’t anything there, then paused at JC’s chin to be sure he got all the juice off before he kissed him

JC made a soft noise and returned the kiss, his free hand going to the side of Justin’s neck even as he wished he had a bowl or something to put the rest of the tomato in. He was hungry still, yeah, but right at that moment he wanted nothing more than to get his hands on Justin. Food could wait.

Justin pulled back after a long moment to grin at JC. "Finish your snack, baby. I’ll be right back, okay?"

JC nodded and obediently took another bite of the tomato, making more juice run down his chin.

Justin made a little growly noise and licked at the juice before it had a chance to run down his neck. "Chocolate would be better, or mint," Justin said with a grin as he pulled away again and stood, "but I could get to like tomato juice if I always get it like this."

JC laughed, taking another bite of tomato and wondering what Justin was up to as he watched him walk out of their room. JC sat there quietly eating his tomato for a few minutes and thinking about all that had happened that evening, his grin slowly fading as it all sank in.

The more he though about it, the more he though he’d let things go too far out by the hot tub, even though he’d promised himself that he wouldn’t do that. He didn’t regret what he had done, not precisely, but he suddenly had the feeling he would if he let things go that far again. He’d promised Lance he wouldn’t do anything with them he regretted and he hadn’t, yet, but how could he explain to them that he knew he _would_ if they did that again?

JC loved Lance, Joey, and Chris more than anyone in the world except Justin, but he wasn’t in love with them and hadn’t really intended for things to get out of hand. When Charlie suggested trying out the hot tub it had sounded like so much fun JC latched on to the idea with both hands, and the others’ reactions to JC kissing Lance had just made him even more certain that was what they all wanted.

It wasn’t _wrong_ to be with Chris, Joey, and Lance like that, JC was sure of that, but it wasn’t really right either and that bothered him a little. He loved them and they loved him but he was in love with Justin, not the others, and it was Justin he should be kissing and holding. JC didn’t know how to explain it even to Justin, he just knew he couldn’t do that again.

The others all seemed to be waiting for JC to take the lead though, so maybe he wouldn’t have to explain, he could just back off a bit and see how things went. Joey hadn’t seemed very comfortable with it now that JC thought about it, and JC knew Lance wouldn’t push for anything so it would mostly be Justin and Chris he had to worry about. Chris was hesitant at first but he’d really gotten into the whole ‘kiss JC and Justin’ idea, and JC knew Justin was willing enough to play that he’d humor Chris and even encourage him, at least for a while.

Justin loved JC more than anything, but he loved the others too and thought having a little fun with them if that was what they wanted was harmless. Justin knew sex and love were two different things and knew he had JC’s heart and soul so he didn’t see any reason to get jealous of JC having sex with someone else, even though Justin wasn’t really interested in trying sex with someone else. Sure, Justin had joked around about sex with the others, but after tonight JC didn’t think Justin could really follow through with it even if JC was okay with it.

JC had watched Justin kissing the others tonight and it was obvious to him that Justin was just having fun, not putting his heart and soul into every touch like he did with JC. Justin had been playful with them once he got over his initial shyness, even determined to make a strong impression, but he hadn’t really gotten seriously into it. JC had been on the receiving end of Justin’s kisses when Justin forgot everything but how much he wanted JC, and Justin hadn’t been anything like that with the others, no matter what he had said before he kissed Chris about not being sure he would want to stop.

JC figured he had Britney to thank for that. He knew Justin and Brit had practiced kissing on each other for years – from the little feather-light kisses Justin loved to use to drive JC to distraction to the deeper ones with just the right combination of pressure, tongue and suction that made JC just want to melt into a puddle – and he knew that neither of them had ever really been serious about it. They’d left hickeys on each other – JC had seen them on Justin’s neck more than once and even on Britney – but kissing Brit was never more than a game to Justin, a way to pass the time when he was bored sort of like playing Playstation only he could do it anywhere. JC had a strong suspicion that Justin felt the same way about kissing the other guys, that it was a lot of fun and a great way to pass the time, but essentially just a game.

JC smiled suddenly as he realized that Justin was just as good at kissing as he was at those video games he’d spent countless hours playing on the bus, and that he’d have to get Brit something special to thank her. She’d definitely gone over and above the call of duty as far as JC was concerned, no matter how much fun Justin was to kiss.

JC stood then to go get ready for bed, wondering how Justin would react when he told him he wasn’t going to be participating in any more naked hot tub parties. JC was sure Justin wouldn’t argue – which was really beginning to get on his nerves, but he was trying to be patient – but he was also pretty sure it would take Justin a while to really understand.

 

 

 

Justin walked down the hall and into the kitchen, surprised to find Lance sitting on the table with Joey kissing him rather thoroughly while Chris stood nearby and dished out a big bowl of chocolate chip ice cream.

"Hey, kid," Chris said with a teasing grin when he saw Justin, "you looking for help?"

Joey and Lance pulled apart and looked over with almost identical grins then as Justin snorted, walking past the other three to the refrigerator. "No, I don’t need any help," Justin answered sarcastically. "Josh’ll want a snack later and I figured I’d find something now so I won’t have to get dressed again." Justin opened the fridge and bent to look inside, obviously in a bit of a hurry to find it and get back to JC.

Lance grinned. "There’s a few slices of cheesecake in there, and a couple of candy bars..." Lance trailed off, thinking, then added, "Oh, and there’s some fruit that I got for Josh too, oranges and a couple of apples."

Justin looked up quickly to give Lance a bright grin. "That’ll be perfect, he loves fruit. Thanks, Scoop."

Joey and Lance watched Justin bend to open the bottom drawer of the fridge as Lance chuckled and said, "No problem, Jup. I’m glad he’s looking for a snack."

Justin stood up with an orange and grabbed a candy bar out of the door then closed the fridge as he smiled at Lance. "Me too."

Chris nodded as he closed the ice cream. "Yeah, good work, kid."

Justin grinned and stepped back from the refrigerator so Chris could put the ice cream up. "I try."

"You’re doing damn good," Chris said with an answering grin. "I haven’t seen him this happy in years." Chris closed the freezer and moved to stand in front of Justin, smiling. "He’s really lucky to have you, Jup."

Justin blushed as he smiled back at Chris and said softly, "Thanks." He looked like he wanted to say something else, but instead he leaned down to give Chris a quick kiss. "Night."

Chris grinned. "G’night. Make sure you two get a few hours sleep before dawn, okay?"

Justin chuckled and nodded as he moved back towards the door.

Joey stepped into Justin’s path with a grin. "Aren’t you going to kiss us good night, too?"

Justin looked surprised, blushing a bit. "Umm...."

Joey snorted softly and stepped closer to give Justin a kiss, cupping the back of Justin’s neck in one hand, and Justin had just begun to respond when Joey pulled away. "A kiss good night I said," Joey said with a grin, "not making out."

Justin blushed again and stepped back as Lance chuckled and hopped off the table, cuffing Joey lightly on the shoulder. "Quit picking on him, Joe." Lance moved over to slip his hands around Justin’s waist to smile up at him as Justin automatically wrapped just one arm around him, since the other hand held the orange and candy bar. Lance gave Justin a little grin as he teased, "You’ll have to come down here, y’know. You’re too tall for me to kiss you."

Justin grinned and ducked his head to kiss Lance, only a little surprised when Lance opened his mouth slightly and invited Justin to deepen the kiss. Justin did and stroked his tongue against Lance’s for a moment before he pulled away and smiled down at him to say softly, "G’night."

Lance smiled and gave Justin a squeeze before he let him go. "Night, Curly."

Justin gave them a quick smile and disappeared down off the hallway as Chris picked up the bowl of ice cream and said, "Y’know, Joe, being in a group full of saps has some definite benefits."

Lance put his hands on his hips to give Chris a dirty look. "Saps?!"

Joey chuckled and started towards their room as Chris nodded and grinned at Lance. "Yeah, saps. Kissing and hugging g’night, saying I love you all the time... I think I’m gonna like being a sap, but y’all just might get tired of it after a while."

Lance laughed and grabbed Chris’ elbow to urge him towards their room. "As long as you’re being sappy with us, we won’t mind a bit, sweetheart. I promise."

Chris grinned and started down the hallway. "Good, I love to cuddle and watching the kid blush every time Joey kisses him is gonna be fun. Now c’mon, baby, we gotta go eat this before it melts."

Lance chuckled and turned off the lights before he followed Chris to their room.

 

 

 

The next morning JC woke up slowly, blinking in the bright sunlight streaming in through the open curtains. He shifted slightly after a moment to see if Justin would let go of him so he could go use the bathroom and wasn’t very surprised when Justin’s arms tightened around him, pulling JC back against his muscular chest again. JC stifled a sigh and wished Justin wasn’t so very literal about holding him all night, then had to smile as he changed his mind and snuggled back against Justin even more, pulling the blankets up a bit higher. He loved the way Justin held him close even when he was asleep, and how safe it felt waking up in Justin’s arms, and given the choice he would never again spend a night any other way. He had waited six years to sleep in Justin’s arms again after all, so if Justin wanted to hold him while he slept, JC figured he could wait a little while to go to the bathroom.

JC moved experimentally again after Justin had relaxed into a deeper sleep about ten minutes later, and grinned when Justin didn’t react. He hoped he could sneak out of bed this time and he had even managed to put several inches between them before strong arms tightened around him again, easily pulling JC right back against Justin’s chest. JC did sigh then, sure that Justin just was not going to let go of him without waking up.

JC hated waking him up, but he had to pee.

Badly.

JC shifted again and was about to say something when Justin nuzzled his hair and mumbled, "G’back t’sleep."

"Let me up baby, I have to use the bathroom," JC replied softly as he ran his hands over the arms wrapped around his waist.

Justin sighed and loosened his hold on JC, folding back the blanket as he looked past him at the clock and said, "Then we’re going back t’sleep. It’s only a little after eight, the guys won’t be up for hours yet."

JC sat up and leaned over to give Justin a quick kiss before he stood. "I know baby, but I gotta go."

Justin blinked in the bright sunlight and tried to wake up, turning his head to admire JC’s naked body as he walked around the bed to the bathroom and disappeared inside before he let his cheek fall to the pillow again. Justin noticed that the sun was at just the right angle to shine in his eyes then and made a face as he closed his eyes tighter, but after barely a minute he was already tired of it and within two he was giving the glass doors a dirty look and considering getting up to close the curtains. He realized then that the sun would be in JC’s eyes too when he got back and he sighed, throwing the blankets back even further to climb to his feet. He could live with it but he wanted JC to get some more sleep and Justin knew it’d be easier for him to do that without the sun in his eyes, so he walked to the glass doors to pull the curtains about halfway closed so they could still get the sea breeze without the sun in their faces. Once that was done Justin stood for a moment looking outside as he yawned, absently scratching his stomach as he watched the waves break on the shore.

It was pretty here, Justin had to admit, and the view was nice even after only a few hours of sleep. He smiled suddenly then, thinking he wouldn’t mind staying up half the night anymore if it was always because he’d stayed up half the night fooling around with JC. They hadn’t made love after they went to bed, but they had done just about everything else, including Justin finally figuring out how to deep throat. It had been completely eluding him for days while JC insisted that he was trying too hard and then sure enough, when Justin stopped trying and was just playing around it finally clicked. Justin hadn’t quite believed it really was that easy so he had wanted to stop and try it again but JC made it plain he didn’t like that idea so Justin had finished what he’d started, hoping he’d be able to do it again.

JC walked back out of the bathroom then and moved to stand behind Justin. He rested one hand on Justin’s waist, kissing his shoulder just before he said softly, "C’mon, baby, back to bed."

Justin turned and wrapped his arms around JC to give him a kiss, which made it quite obvious JC had brushed his teeth. Justin pulled away as soon as he realized that, smiling at JC as he said, "I will in a minute. Why don’t you go keep the bed warm for me?"

JC chuckled and gave Justin a squeeze before he let go and stepped away. "Sure, baby."

Justin walked into the bathroom then and JC moved to their bed to curl up on it so that he could look out at the waves, shivering slightly and wishing Justin would hurry up and get back to bed so he could get warm again. After dwelling on how cold he was for only a moment, JC realized thinking about it just made him colder so he decided that he would think about how much he liked the house instead.

It was nice and private – which he knew was important the way he and Justin had been acting – and it had a beautiful beach and a great location at the very end of the island, close enough to town that shopping would be convenient but far enough out it was quiet and the closest house was the one where their bodyguards were staying, about half a block away. JC realized suddenly that he liked it here at least as much as he did at his house in Florida, and he wondered if they should think about buying a new house, one on the beach somewhere. They weren’t home often but they both loved the ocean so it would be nice to live right at the beach what little time they did have to spend at home.

Justin walked out of the bathroom after another minute or three and over to the bed, putting one knee next to JC’s waist and then pausing to roll JC to his back and grin down at him as he said, "G’mornin." Justin leaned down to give him a slow loving kiss before he crawled over JC to get back to where he’d been most of the night, pulling the blankets up over them as he laid down on his side. Justin shimmied slightly to get more comfortable and then grinned at JC, opening his arms in invitation.

JC returned the grin as he rolled to his side facing Justin and then scooted towards him until they were only a few inches apart, draping one arm around Justin’s waist as he said, "You sure you want to go back to sleep? You look pretty wide awake to me."

Justin gave JC a crooked little grin and pulled him a little closer, then pulled the blankets up around JC’s back before he closed his eyes. "I’m already asleep, babe, you just can’t tell."

JC chuckled quietly and kissed Justin’s cheek before shifting a little and then closing his eyes to go back to sleep.

 

 

 

Lance was laying on his stomach on a bed, naked and cold. He wasn’t quite awake, but he was definitely sure he was cold and he had no blankets either so he wanted someone to curl up against and get warm. He stretched one arm out then, and when his questing fingers didn’t encounter a body he frowned vaguely and then rolled to his side to feel across the other side of the bed. There was nobody there either and he made a little ‘huh’ noise, still not opening his eyes. He was sure he hadn’t gone to bed alone but he was alone now and cold, and without a blanket too which just sucked royally.

He heard a soft chuckle then as he felt the mattress dip behind him and he opened his eyes just in time to see Chris sit down on the bed in front of him. "Wh’ were you?" Lance asked, his sleepy voice little more than a low rumble.

Joey kissed his shoulder and slid his arms around Lance’s waist from behind as Chris grinned at Lance and replied, "Joe had to piss."

Lance thought about that a second as he settled back against Joey’s warm body, blinking in confusion as he tried to wake up and make sense of what Chris had said at the same time. "And he needed your help?" Lance asked finally.

Lance could feel Joey’s soft chuckle as much as hear it, and then Joey said, "No, darlin’. Chris was being all clingy again and I had to wake him up so I could get up."

"And I decided he had to make it up to me," Chris added, still grinning.

Lance chuckled softly, sure what that meant. "What time is it?"

Chris made a face and looked past Joey and Lance at the clock before he said, "Nearly one."

Lance’s eyes widened, suddenly wide awake as he said, "Tell me you’re kidding."

Chris laughed and shook his head. "Nope, sorry babe, it’s eleven minutes ‘til one."

Lance groaned and closed his eyes. "We wasted half the day again."

Joey snorted and kissed the side of Lance’s neck. "We were sleepy and we’re on vacation, so we slept. It wasn’t a waste." Joey continued kissing and nibbling at Lance’s neck as soon as he finished speaking, working his way down to Lance’s shoulder.

Lance sighed, not bothering to open his eyes as he said, "But we could have spent the morning out on that beautiful beach, or going for a drive or—"

"Sleeping in because we watched JC have sex with Justin and then had sex ourselves in a hot tub last night," Chris said, grinning and watching them, wondering if Lance had realized yet that Joey was going to do him again this morning instead of letting Lance have a turn.

‘ _Of course_ ,’ Chris thought with a sudden smirk, ‘ _that_ _’_ _s assuming Lance_ wanted _a turn._ ’

Chris knew that Lance could be a complete dom who was quite willing and able to screw either of them into the mattress, but given the choice Lance seemed like he was usually more likely to be a wanton, willing bottom who would lay back and let them do anything they wanted to do to him. Chris and Joey both loved the combination, unlikely as it was – who’d ever heard of a dominant bottom? – but while Chris was still figuring out what triggered which mood, Joey knew exactly how to get Lance to want what he wanted. From watching Joey work, Chris had finally picked up that the way Joey was kissing and nibbling at Lance’s neck and shoulder meant Joey’d be making love to the blond sometime very soon, but Chris could do the exact same thing and get the opposite result so he was sure he was missing something somewhere.

Lance was quiet a minute as he stretched his neck with a little smile to let Joey have better access. "We did, didn’t we."

Joey chuckled and nuzzled Lance’s ear. "Uh-huh."

Joey pulled Lance’s hips back against his then and Lance made a soft little growly noise and arched back against Joey before he looked up at Chris in surprise. "I thought you had Joe do you?"

Chris smirked. "Nope, he sat me on the counter and blew my mind. I think he already had plans for you."

Joey chuckled again and lightly nibbled Lance’s shoulder as he repeated, "Uh-huh," and then thrust easily against Lance, making exactly what he wanted very obvious.

Lance closed his eyes then, making a low noise and arching his back as Joey slid one hand further down Lance’s stomach to play with the curly hair below his navel. Joey knew Lance couldn’t stand that for long, and sure enough it wasn’t even a minute before Lance said, "God, Joe. Quit teasing and fuck me already."

Joey chuckled and moved his hand a little further down, making Lance rock against him as Joey gave Chris a grin over Lance’s shoulder. "Get the lube out of my jeans, would you?"

Chris chuckled and stood to go pick up Joey’s jeans and go through the pockets while Joey continued stroking Lance, who was making low noises and alternating between thrusting against Joey’s hand and rocking back against him. Chris turned back to look at Joey and Lance after a moment and watched them with a little grin for a few minutes before he finally asked, "Was that all we had left, Joe-bear?"

Joey stopped what he was doing, ignoring Lance’s soft whimper of protest. "I think so, why?"

"It ain’t here," Chris said and then turned the jeans right side out. "I’ll go get some from—"

"Forget it," Lance said impatiently, pushing his hips back against Joey. "Won’t be the first time we did without."

"Babe—" Joey started, trying not to laugh.

Lance turned his head to look over his shoulder at Joey as he interrupted him to say, "I ain’t waiting for Chris to go gawk at JC and Justin who knows how long before he wakes those two up and then tries to get one of them to make sense long enough to tell him what the hell they did with the lube." Lance flexed and Joey moved involuntarily against him as Lance grinned smugly. "Nike, man. Just do it." Lance moved against Joey again with a teasing grin then and Joey growled softly and moved his hand suddenly, making Lance gasp and arch against him.

Chris laughed and dropped Joey’s jeans to go sit on the bed with them. Joey seemed to know Lance inside and out – literally – but Chris was still learning what Lance liked best so he enjoyed watching them.

Well okay, so he would have enjoyed watching them anyway but at least he had a good excuse if Lance ever asked.

 

 

 

Mike was out on the beach, laughing and chasing Charlie. The two teens had been up since around ten and had eaten breakfast and then waited around in the den for the others to wake up until they became unutterably bored with the TV, which still had too many channels with too few decent programs. They’d discussed several ideas and finally decided to leave a note on the fridge and go take a walk on the beach near the house, since they didn’t feel right really leaving the guys and that way they could find them easily.

Their walk had gone fairly uneventfully until Mike ruffled Charlie’s hair and made a comment about him needing a haircut, which made Charlie pull away from him and say he was thinking about growing his hair out and braiding it like Chris’ used to be, looking completely serious. Mike had laughed at him and said he would look like a freak if he did, and then they’d argued jokingly back and forth for a few minutes about experimental hair until Charlie got tired of it and suddenly reached up to pull the tie out of Mike’s hair before he took off running. Mike had laughed and followed Charlie towards the house, intending to catch him and then go toss Charlie in the water.

Mike finally caught him in a flying tackle and he and Charlie both went rolling in the sand near the end of the deck outside JC and Justin’s room, wrestling playfully.

"Gimme that, you!" Mike finally said after almost a minute of rolling around, laughing as he tried to get the band out of Charlie’s hand.

Charlie twisted his hand out of Mike’s grasp again, trying to squirm free as he grinned. "Nope!"

Mike managed to pin Charlie down then, straddling Charlie’s hips and ignoring how his hair hung around his face as he finally caught Charlie’s wrists and held them down on either side of Charlie’s head with a smirk. "Got you now, babe. You gonna give it up or do I have to take it?"

Charlie pouted up at Mike and opened the hand holding the hair band. "Here then, but I’ll just take it off again."

Mike let go of Charlie’s wrists, sitting back with a bemused look as he brushed his hair back with one hand. "You know how my hair falls in my face if I leave it loose."

Charlie smiled up at Mike and ran his hands up Mike’s thighs. "But I like it down, love. It looks really good."

Mike made a face, pretending to ignore the fact Charlie was touching him even though it was having a predictable effect. "But I hate it when it falls in my face, babe, you know how that bugs me."

"You could always tie back just the front," JC said then, sounding amused.

Mike looked up in surprise and Charlie tipped his head back to look towards the deck and see JC sitting astride the railing in nothing but a pair of very short cutoff jeans.

"Mornin’," JC said then, grinning at their surprised looks. "Or is it afternoon?"

Mike laughed and shifted off of Charlie to sit in the sand next to him, sure that Charlie wouldn’t want to play with an audience. "Afternoon, definitely. It was after one when we came out here, and that was a while ago."

Mike realized then that JC’s shorts were so short that there was no way he was wearing boxers with them, and after folding their laundry Mike was pretty sure all of them wore boxers so he figured JC most likely wasn’t wearing anything at all under those short shorts.

Mike suddenly realized he really didn’t want to think too much about JC being nearly naked – not with JC right in front of him anyway – so he distracted himself by asking, "And what do you mean, just tie back the front?"

Charlie sat up, blushing, and pulled his knees up to his chest as he wished he didn’t have such tight jeans on. Not only had he and Mike been playing around, but now JC was only a few feet away in a pair of shorts that didn’t help a bit. Charlie was good at pretending he didn’t notice how good Mike looked most of the time – he’d had lots of practice – and he usually had no problem at all completely ignoring other men, but he was quite sure Lance was right the other night. Nobody who was still breathing could ignore how beautiful JC was, especially when he was mostly naked.

JC grinned and swung his other leg over to jump off the railing, landing lightly in the sand and walking over to them. "Just tie back the front man, like—" JC broke off, then cocked his head to one side and asked, "Mind if I do it?"

Mike shook his head quickly making his hair fall in his face, then made a face and flipped it back. "Please do."

JC grinned and moved behind Mike to gently run his fingers through Mike’s long blond hair to untangle it and gather the hair above Mike’s ears into a neat tail on the top of his head while Mike repeated silently to himself that JC was just being nice. JC was always nice and sweet as could be but he was most definitely not coming on to Mike, so Mike _really_ needed to get a hold of himself. Well, so to speak.

"Like that," JC said when he was done, stepping to the side to give Mike a grin without letting go.

Charlie offered JC the hair band he still held. "It looks great! Gets his hair out of his face without tying it all back like he usually does. I like his hair down, but Mike hardly ever wears it that way."

Mike made a face at Charlie and didn’t say anything, trusting Charlie’s word for how it looked since he knew Charlie had a thing for his hair. Mike had started growing his hair out when he was thirteen, mostly as a rebellion against his parents, but when he had realized Charlie liked it he kept wearing it long even though he had made his point to his parents by then. Mike really didn’t care at the moment how his hair looked, he just wanted JC to get done so he could quit touching him. It was a nice idea in theory – one Mike had thought of in the past, actually, and never expected might come true – but in reality it was a little intimidating and could easily get really embarrassing.

JC nodded and smiled as he moved closer to Mike again to put the tie on. "Yep, and it’s easy, too. Justin even figured it out when he had that huge-assed ‘fro, and he’s hopeless with hair."

"Hey, you liked my ‘fro!" Justin said with a laugh as he walked out of their room, already wearing long khaki shorts and pulling on a Beatles t-shirt as he moved over to lean on the railing. Lance still hadn’t come to wake them, but when they had heard Mike and Charlie outside they had decided to join them.

JC looked up as soon as he had Mike’s hair fastened securely and grinned at Justin. "Yeah, baby, but for a while there you took it a bit too far."

Mike and Charlie both laughed, nodding, and Mike was grateful for the complete change of subject as he said, "Yeah, I’ve always wondered when in the world you found time to make some _unfortunate_ person cornrow that forest."

Justin spluttered as JC laughed and said, "I did it, on the bus. _Hours_ of ‘Justin, hold still!’ and ‘If you don’t quit squirming around I’m gonna leave it like this!’"

Justin made a face at JC and then gave Mike a grin. "Sitting still while Josh did those cornrows was a pain in the ass, but once he was done I didn’t have to mess with my hair for a week if I got lucky. It gave me an excuse to almost sit in his lap for hours on end, too, which is always a good thing."

JC chuckled and walked over to where Justin stood, reaching up to grab the railing before he stepped up on the edge of the deck with one foot and lifted himself up easily. He grinned and kissed Justin and then swung one leg over the railing, turning to look back down at Mike and Charlie. "That’s pretty much why I learned how to do cornrows; it gave me an excuse to spend more time with Jup."

Mike grinned. "How did you do things like that without embarrassing yourselves? I can’t sit with Charlie that close and not, um, react." Charlie blushed and wished that didn’t go both ways, or that he was half as shameless as Mike was so he could just ignore it.

JC grinned and looked at Justin, who shrugged and said, "I didn’t think about wanting Josh, or about how sexy he is... If I had I would have had a hard time hiding how I felt about him. Literally." Justin grinned and looked at JC then as he asked, "What about you?"

"Loose clothes and locking bathroom doors," JC said chuckling.

Mike grinned at Charlie, who thought JC was on to something. Loose clothes would be a good idea if Mike was going to keep teasing Charlie _and_ wearing his hair like that, not to mention the fact JC was running around mostly naked. Charlie was beginning to think JC was as shameless as Justin, he just hid it better.

Justin laughed and asked, "Seriously?"

"Yes, seriously!" JC said, grinning at Justin and nodding. "I can’t remember how many times we were stuck on the bus and I pretended to be asleep until I couldn’t take it anymore, and then I would go hide in the bathroom and take care of my, um, _problem_."

Charlie blushed at that, wondering how JC could admit that so easily in front of them.

Mike just wished he had a decent excuse to go drag Charlie off someplace moderately private – Mike wasn’t in the mood to be picky – so he could do the same thing.

Justin chuckled and stepped closer to JC, slipping his arms around JC’s bare waist. "Well, you won’t be doing that anymore. Long bus rides will just mean more time we can be together."

JC smiled and swung his leg back over the rail to turn so he was sitting there leaning back against Justin’s chest. "I know, I almost can’t wait for Texas. Almost."

Justin laughed at that and kissed the side of JC’s neck as Mike grinned up at them and asked, "What’s in Texas?"

"Nothing!" JC and Justin both replied at the same time, then laughed.

"Texas is boring as hell," Justin went on. "We all hate it when we have to drive across it instead of going around. There’s no decent TV and no cell phones half the time, and mile after mile of nothing but trees, fields or pastures."

"And that’s what we have to do next week, plus crossing Arizona and New Mexico which are almost as bad," JC added with a little grin. "It’ll be about four days of nothing but riding in our bus all by ourselves. Well, except you guys of course, you’ll probably ride with us unless y’all wanna share Joanna’s bus. I don’t think there’s much room on any of the others."

Justin opened his mouth to say something else when he heard a loud knock, then someone stuck his head into their room and said, "Up an— Huh.” There was a pause, and then, “Guys?"

Justin looked over his shoulder and grinned. "We’re out here, Chris."

Chris walked out of their room a moment later, grinning, and joined them at the railing. "Mornin’ kid, Josh." He saw Mike and Charlie then and said, "Hey, I thought y’all went for a walk!"

Mike grinned up at them and stood, dusting sand off his clothes. “We did go for a walk, we’re just back already."

Mike offered a hand to Charlie and pulled him to his feet.

Chris looked them up and down, then smirked. "Looks like you two have been having a little fun, too."

Charlie blushed bright red at that and his eyes went wide. "All we did was walk!"

"Dammit," Mike added, making JC, Chris, and Justin laugh.

Charlie gave Mike a dirty look. "You can stay out here and talk about sex if you want to, _I_ _’_ _m_ going to go make myself useful and help Lance with breakfast."

Charlie turned then to start for the stairs leading up to the deck but Mike reached out to grab his hand and turn him back around, pulling the much shorter redhead into his arms as he said, "Aw, c’mon babe, don’t be that way."

Charlie looked up at Mike as he rested his hands on Mike’s waist and said patiently, "It’s my job, helping them is what we _do_ , remember? I’d tell you to come help too, but I’m sure they don’t want you to order pizza so they’re better off without you in the kitchen."

"Babe, that was cold!" Mike said, looking surprised. "I’m not that bad in a kitchen!"

JC, Justin, and Chris all grinned as Charlie snorted and said, "Yeah, you are. You can’t cook, Mikey. We both know you can barely even make a cheeseburger."

Mike pouted a few seconds, then gave Charlie a wry look as he admitted, "Maybe so, but I could cut up the tomatoes or something."

Charlie chuckled. "Or you could stay out of the way and let me do it."

Mike grinned suddenly. "Okay, babe, you convinced me. I get to do dishes though."

Chris snorted softly and said, "I hope he doesn’t think he won anything," making JC and Justin both grin at him while Mike pretended he hadn’t heard him.

Charlie ignored them too and grinned at Mike. "Deal."

Mike smiled and ducked his head to kiss Charlie then, pulling away after only a moment because he was sure Charlie wouldn’t appreciate him trying for more in front of the others. Charlie gave him a little smile then and slid one hand up to Mike’s chest as he lifted his other hand to thread his fingers into the long blond hair falling loose down the back of Mike’s neck. Charlie pulled Mike down into a deeper kiss then, surprising Mike just as much as he surprised the three watching from the deck. Charlie had made it pretty plain that he didn’t feel comfortable kissing and touching Mike in front of them, so for him to do both was unexpected to say the least.

Charlie slid the hand in Mike’s hair down next to his other one on Mike’s chest after they had kissed for a few minutes and then pulled away to grin up at him. "Now be good, okay?"

Mike nodded, surprised but grinning ear to ear as he let Charlie go and then watched him walk up the steps and around the corner of the house before he said, "I’m so damn lucky."

Justin chuckled as Chris grinned and said, "I know the feeling, kid."

Mike looked up at them with a grin and then started towards the steps as JC nodded and said, "Yeah, we’re all pretty lucky."

"Some of us more than others though," Justin said with a smirk, scooping JC up off the railing to easily cradle him in his arms.

JC giggled. "Baby, put me down!"

Justin grinned. "Why? You’re not heavy."

JC snorted and looked at Justin for a moment, then slipped an arm around Justin’s neck with a little smile. "You’re gonna get tired of carrying me around soon enough, so I guess I’ll just enjoy this while it lasts."

Chris smirked and looked rather pointedly at where JC’s shorts had slipped down his butt. "And I’ll enjoy the view."

JC looked over his shoulder at Chris in surprise, and then realized what he was looking at and blushed. “Justin."

Justin laughed and stepped away from the railing to let JC’s feet drop to the deck without letting go of the rest of him. "He’s seen it all baby, let him look."

JC blushed a bit redder and pulled his shorts back up. "I don’t mind him looking at me, I just don’t want to moon him."

Chris laughed at that. "I won’t mind if you do, C, I promise."

Mike grinned and started towards the corner of the house. "I’m going to go see if the clothes we put in the dryer are done. You three have fun."

"Bye," Chris said, grinning and watching Mike go before he looked back at JC and Justin to find Justin was making a good attempt to swallow JC’s tongue.

Chris smirked and watched them kiss for a long moment before JC finally pulled back to grin at Justin and say, "Lemme go, I’m gonna go change shorts."

Justin pouted. "But I like these." He grinned wickedly and pulled JC closer as he added, "A lot."

JC laughed and moved his hands up to Justin’s chest to push him back, not at all surprised when Justin let him. "I’m sure you do, baby, but they’re falling off."

Chris grinned. "So put on a belt. Those shorts are hot."

JC turned towards Chris, not quite grinning but definitely looking amused. "You want me to wear them, too?"

"Uh-huh, the only thing that’d be better is nothing at all," Chris answered with a wicked little smirk.

JC laughed and moved closer to Chris to give him a quick kiss on his cheek. "You’re sweet." He turned and walked into the room he was sharing with Justin then, leaving the other two on the deck as he went to find his belt and a t-shirt.

Justin and Chris watched him go, then grinned at each other and followed him.

 

 


	55. Chapter 55

 

~~~~55~~~~

 

JC glanced up when Justin and Chris followed him into the room and gave them a quick grin before he looked back down and started digging in his suitcase. "Baby, do you remember what I did with my belt?"

Chris looked around the room to see that JC’s suitcase was on the bed and Justin’s was on the dresser, still open and with clothes hanging half out of it from when Justin had gotten his own t-shirt, while the rest of their things were piled haphazardly in the corner in front of the closet they wouldn’t bother to use. None of them ever bothered with hanging their clothes up anymore unless they were at home, and they seldom bothered with putting things in drawers because they had lived out of suitcases so long that it was easier to do just that.

Justin walked over behind JC with a little grin and put his arms around him, drawing Chris’ attention again. "Uh-huh."

JC stopped looking through his suitcase and turned his head to look at Justin, a tolerant smile on his face. "So where is it?"

"Not in there," Justin replied, his grin widening as Chris chuckled softly and crossed the room to sit down on their decidedly rumpled bed and watch them.

JC turned in Justin’s arms then, looking bemused. "Cute, smartass, but I didn’t ask where it _wasn_ _’_ _t_ , I asked when my belt _is_."

Justin smirked and pulled JC a little closer. "I know."

JC snorted, then grinned and slipped his hands up around Justin’s neck. "If you don’t want to tell me, I’ll just change shorts. I don’t care either way."

Justin pouted. "You’re no fun."

JC laughed, his eyebrows going up as he pulled away from Justin a bit. "Oh no, you did _not_ just tell me I’m no fun! Maybe I should just go see what Lance and Joe are doing, I’m sure _they_ _’_ _d_ be happy to let me hang out with them..."

"No babe, really, you’re lots of fun," Justin hastened to say, tightening his grip as he pulled JC closer. "And your belt’s in my backpack."

Chris chuckled and shook his head, thinking Justin was just as dense as ever. JC would never go do anything with the others as long as Justin was available and wanted him around.

JC grinned. "Thank you, baby." He kissed Justin, making a soft noise when Justin pulled him closer and deepened the kiss.

Chris watched them, grinning and thinking this was much better than watching Lance cook – especially since he’d been chased out of the kitchen and told not to bug Lance anymore – but when Justin’s hand slid inside JC’s shorts after a few minutes Chris stood to go leave them alone. He liked watching them, sure, and they’d said they didn’t mind in the hot tub the night before, but he didn’t want to take advantage of their generosity. Well, not too often anyway. If he was lucky there’d be something good on Boomerang, and if there wasn’t he could always watch VH1 Classics.

Chris was almost to the door when he tripped over Justin’s shoes, making just enough noise that JC and Justin pulled apart to turn and see what he was doing. "Where’re you sneakin’ off to?" Justin asked, grinning and pulling JC back into his arms, both of them now facing Chris and the door instead of the bed.

Chris looked surprised. "Uh, I was just gonna give you two some privacy."

"Chris," JC said with a smile, "if we wanted you to go we would have asked you to. You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to, but don’t leave just because you think we want you to."

Chris looked a little sheepish. "Well, that sort of is why I was going. Lance told me not to bug him while he’s cooking so—"

JC chuckled and lifted his hands towards Chris as he interrupted him to say, "C’mere, you." Chris walked over to them and took JC’s hands, not sure what JC wanted but willing to do just about anything to please him. JC gave Chris’ hands a gentle tug to pull him closer as he said, "Chris, don’t ever feel like we’d rather not have you around, because it’s just not true."

Justin nodded, smiling at Chris over JC’s shoulder. "Yeah, we like having you with us."

Chris looked at them both for a long moment before he finally said softly, "Thank you."

JC stepped forward out of Justin’s arms to give Chris a lingering but chaste kiss and then pulled away to smile at him, his blue eyes gentle and sparkling. "Don’t thank us, we’re lucky to be able to call you our friend, much less more."

Chris looked up into JC’s eyes for a long moment and then asked, "Am I more? Than a friend I mean?"

JC looked surprised. "Of course you are! You’re family, almost a brother to us, but you’re more than that too, Chris. We both love you."

Justin stepped around JC, moving to stand close to Chris’ side and rest one hand on the shorter man’s back as he smiled. "There’s only two other people in the world we love as much as we love you Chris, and nobody we’d rather be with than you, Lance and Joe."

JC nodded, smiling, and gave Chris’ hands a squeeze as he repeated, "Nobody."

Chris looked a little awed and then suddenly smiled, looking at JC and then at Justin. "I feel the same way. I have for a long time, but I was afraid to say anything."

"Don’t be anymore," JC said with a sudden grin. "Say what you feel, we won’t mind. In fact, we’ll probably say it right back and be so sappy about it that we drive you batty."

Justin grinned as Chris chuckled and said, "I’m thinking sappy might become a good thing."

JC gave Chris a quick kiss on the cheek, then let go of his hands and turned to go get Justin’s backpack out of the pile of bags in the corner. "Sappy has _always_ been a good thing, Critter, you just never noticed."

When Chris didn’t answer JC glanced over his shoulder at him and then grinned, turning to get a better look. Justin was kissing Chris, gently sucking his lower lip while Chris obviously wanted to put his right hand on Justin’s neck but was hesitating, his hand hovering close to Justin’s shoulder. Justin smiled and deepened the kiss when he realized it, stroking Chris’ tongue with his own as he slid his hand up Chris’ right arm and pulled Chris’ hand to his neck. He held Chris’ hand there until Chris rubbed his neck with his thumb and then Justin lowered his left hand to Chris’ waist to let Chris take control of the kiss, wanting to see what he’d do.

JC watched with a grin as Chris’ hand rested on Justin’s neck for a moment before his fingers slid up into Justin’s curls, pulling Justin’s head down a little further as Chris deepened the kiss again. Chris’ left hand moved slowly around to rest on the small of Justin’s back and then he took a small step towards him, sucking gently at Justin’s tongue and drawing a soft noise from Justin before Chris suddenly pulled away to give him a little grin. "Not that I’m complaining or anything, but what was that for?"

Justin grinned and pulled Chris a little closer. "Cause I felt like it."

JC smirked. "Get used to it Critter, he does that a lot."

Chris looked over at JC in surprise and JC winked at him, then turned to crouch down and open Justin’s backpack.

Justin grinned at Chris. "Unless of course you don’t want me to kiss you..."

Chris looked up at Justin, wide-eyed. "Oh no, I don’t mind at all," he said quickly, "I was just a little surprised." He grinned suddenly and added, "It was a nice kiss."

Justin looked decidedly. "Of course."

Chris snorted and pushed him away. "Don’t get all cocky, kid. I might have to swat you."

JC chuckled, standing up with his belt. "Too late Chris, he’s definitely cocky." JC grinned wickedly and added, "In more ways than one."

Justin blushed a bit and turned to dig in JC’s suitcase as JC walked towards them.

Chris smirked, saying, "Hey, that’s right, the kid is hu—"

"Babe, why don’t you wear this one?" Justin said, interrupting Chris as he offered JC a t-shirt, trying hard to ignore the fact his face was flaming.

JC grinned and took the shirt. "Sure, baby.” He draped the shirt over his shoulder so he could use both hands to thread his belt through the loops on his shorts.

Chris smirked and sat on the end of the bed Indian style to watch Justin. "Is something wrong, kid?"

Justin gave Chris a dirty look and started straightening up JC’s suitcase so he could close it, oblivious to the fact he would have just crammed everything back in if were his own suitcase. "Nope, not a thing. I’m the happiest guy you know."

Chris laughed. "Uh-huh, Juppy, sure. That’s why you gave me the bulldog look."

JC chuckled as Justin looked up in surprise and asked, " _Bulldog_ look? Where the hell did that come from?!"

Chris grinned. "When you glared at me you had your forehead all wrinkled up and it reminded me of a bulldog. You do that a lot by the way."

Justin spluttered while JC grinned and pulled his belt tight as he said, "I’ve noticed it, too. I think he’s cute when he does that."

Chris rolled his eyes and gave JC a tolerant look. "Josh, you think he’s cute no matter what he’s doing."

"Only ‘cause he is," JC answered immediately, still grinning as he started to put on the plain light blue t-shirt Justin had given him.

Chris watched with a grin as JC squirmed into the shirt, looking surprised as he pulled it down and looked down at his chest to see the shirt was quite simply skin tight. "Baby? Why can’t I wear a shirt that fits?"

Chris laughed while Justin smirked and asked, "What do you mean, Josh?"

JC snorted. "I’m skinny as hell Justin, but not quite skinny enough for this to fit. I know I’ve got shirts in there that do."

JC walked over to stand next to Justin by his suitcase and started to dig for a shirt but Justin wrapped both arms around him, easily pulling JC away from the suitcase as he smirked. "Oh no, you’re already wearing a shirt babe, you don’t need two!

Chris grinned and watched as JC struggled a bit, then gave up with a sigh and thought a moment before he said softly, "Baby, this shirt is not at all comfortable."

Justin pouted and let him go. "Okay, okay, change shirts. If that one’s _that_ small I’ll toss it, there’s no reason to haul it around if you can’t wear it."

JC turned and gave Justin a kiss, then pulled the too-tight t-shirt off and turned back to his suitcase to rummage around in it. "I had it in my suitcase because I was gonna give it to lil’bit next time I saw her, it wasn’t in there for _me_ to wear."

JC pulled another t-shirt out of the suitcase and Justin grinned, suddenly not minding so much that JC wasn’t going to wear the extra-tight shirt he’d picked out.

Chris chuckled, shaking his head. "If we go anywhere today you’re not wearing that, Josh. You know that, right?"

JC pulled the purple t-shirt on and then grinned at Chris. "If we go anywhere today I have to _get dressed_. I wouldn’t even go in a gas station in these shorts!"

Justin laughed as Chris grinned at JC and said, "But Josh, dude, those shorts are hot. You look better in Daisy Dukes than Daisy Duke!"

JC blushed at that and was glad to hear Mike’s voice outside say, "Guys?"

"In here, Mike," Justin called, still grinning as he turned and began putting JC’s suitcase back in some semblance of order, again.

Mike walked to the sliding glass doors and stopped just inside to grin at them. "I was told to tell you three you’d better get a move on because breakfast is almost ready."

JC grinned. "Hey, great, I’m starved! Thanks Mike!" JC headed for the door that led to the rest of the house without waiting for the other three to follow or even answer, and Chris watched him go before he looked back at Justin, who was unhurriedly zipping up JC’s suitcase.

"Aren’t you gonna take off after him, kid?" Chris asked after a second, looking curious.

Justin looked up in surprise as he picked up the suitcase. "Why should I? He’s safe enough here." Justin carried the suitcase over to set it next to his bag and then turned and leaned against the dresser to look at Chris, his arms folded across his chest as he waited for an answer.

"Well," Chris said thoughtfully after a moment, "you’ve been following him around like you used to, so I thought you’d leave when he did, that’s all." Chris shrugged.

Justin chuckled and walked back over to the bed to look down at Chris a few seconds before he leaned down suddenly and kissed him, making Mike’s eyebrows go up. Well, Mike didn’t have to wonder if they’d enjoyed themselves in the hot tub the night before anymore. He was pretty sure this was new.

Justin pulled away after only a moment to smirk at Chris. "I’m not fifteen now, Critter."

Chris grinned up at him. "I noticed that, Curly, just about the time JC stole your pants last night."

Justin blushed slightly but he offered Chris a hand up as he said, "Yeah, well, I could say the same thing."

Chris’ grin widened into a smirk as Justin pulled him to his feet. "You noticed I’m not fifteen last night when JC stole my pants? Jup, dude, you didn’t even _know_ me when I was fifteen."

Mike grinned at that, wondering who else JC was stealing clothes from out there by that hot tub. When Mike was out there he had noticed there were a lot of clothes scattered around.

Justin stuck his tongue out at Chris. "You know what I meant, quit being a smartass."

"Come _on_ , Justin, your breakfast is ready!" Lance’s voice called down the hallway.

Chris and Justin grinned at each other and then headed out of the room, not even noticing it when Mike followed them because they’d forgotten the tall blond was there again.

JC looked up from his plate as Chris and Justin walked into the kitchen and gave them both a grin before he took another mouthful of his omelet.

Lance looked towards the hall then and smiled. "Justin, your eggs are getting cold. Yours will be ready in just a minute, Chris, so don’t disappear." Lance turned back to the stove to move Joey’s omelet off the heat then before he reached for a plate from the small stack he’d put nearby, and none of them really noticed when Mike walked into the room past Justin and Chris and then around the table to go into the living room and see what Charlie was doing.

Joey grinned and watched as Chris and Justin both walked between the table and the counter, Justin moving to sit by JC while Chris continued around the table.

Chris walked over by Lance and watched him flip Joey’s eggs onto a plate before he said, "Baby, that looks great."

Lance gave Chris a grin and moved past him to give Joey his plate, pausing on his way back to the stove to kiss Chris lightly. "Thanks. Now sit down, sweetheart, you’re in the way."

Chris chuckled and moved over to the fridge to get a Mountain Dew before he went to sit by Joey and watch JC eat. "Josh, dude," he said after a moment, "you act starved."

Lance turned to watch as JC looked up suddenly, pausing in mid-chew, then finished chewing his mouthful of eggs before he said, "I am, why?"

Chris grinned. "No reason, just making an observation."

JC gave Chris a funny look. "Oookay..." He looked at Chris for a moment longer, obviously a little confused, and then began eating again, completely missing the look Justin gave Chris.

Chris looked surprised when Justin glared at him, then realized what he’d done and looked sheepish as he mouthed, "Sorry."

Justin gave Chris a quick smile to show he was forgiven and started eating again, and Lance turned back to the stove to flip Chris’ omelet, wondering if Chris would ever remember not to talk about JC’s eating habits in front of JC. It wouldn’t do any good at all, Lance was sure, and would just give JC something else to worry over, which none of them wanted. JC had enough on his mind, he didn’t need to wonder if his friends were keeping track of every mouthful he ate too, even though they all were.

Lance took Chris’ omelet off the stove then and flipped it onto a plate, then walked over to put it on the table in front of Chris. "Careful, sweetheart, it’s hot."

"Thanks baby," Chris said, giving Lance a quick grin.

"You’re welcome," Lance replied, returning the grin before he walked back to the stove to work on his own breakfast. Lance poured what was left of the eggs into the skillet and waited for it to firm up enough he could add the filling for his omelet and fold it in half, then turned to watch the others eat as he waited for it to finish cooking. JC was almost done with his breakfast already, an amazing feat for him, and Lance was considering offering him some fruit or cheesecake or something. If JC would eat more Lance was definitely going to encourage him as long as he could do that without making JC self-conscious.

Chris thought it was all the sex that was making JC hungry again after years of not really caring if he ate or not, and Lance had even reinforced the idea, but he’d done that mostly because he didn’t want Justin feeling even more guilty, not because he believed it. Lance hadn’t told any of the others, not even Joey, but he thought a large part of the reason JC hadn’t eaten much in the last few years was that he simply hadn’t been happy. The sleeping constantly followed by bouts of almost manic energy, the way JC seemed to make no sense whatsoever and couldn’t string together two coherent sentences about half the time, the ‘sure, whatever’ responses to questions JC really should have had more concern over... All of that hinted at severe depression when Lance really thought about it, and Lance knew from personal experience that depression could make a person change completely without them even knowing it.

Joey was the only one who knew that Lance had fought depression on his own for almost a year before the tour doctor had figured it out and put him on medication for it, and Joey had only found out because he always made sure Lance had heart medication on hand and had found the other bottle. Lance had to take the pills for months before he got a handle on his life – with Joey’s encouragement and help – and didn’t need them anymore. Lance had wished then that depression had stolen his appetite instead of his willpower, but now he thought he’d gotten off easy. Being a bit overweight couldn’t really hurt him, not the way they exercised, and he didn’t have someone who was perfectly willing to follow him around and make sure he ate even if he fussed at him for it.

‘ _Well, I didn_ _’_ _t know I had them_ ,’ Lance thought, looking over with a smile at where Chris and Joey were sitting at the table eating their breakfast and waiting for him to join them. He had two of the most loyal men he’d ever met watching over him and trying to keep their ‘baby boy’ as happy and healthy as humanly possible. Lance’s smile widened a bit as he turned back to the stove to flip his omelet, thinking that they were doing a pretty good job of it, too. He hadn’t been this happy or felt this good in years.

By the time Lance’s omelet was done, JC had finished eating and Justin was nearly done, so when Lance put his plate on the table he didn’t sit down immediately, instead moving to the refrigerator to get out an apple, a couple of oranges, and a Pepsi.

JC grinned. "You read my mind."

Lance chuckled and sat the fruit on the table in front of JC and Justin, and then sat down by his plate. "I’m good at that."

"Yeah you are, Scoop," JC said with a grin then picked up one of the oranges and began to peel it, using his fork to make a gap in the tough skin.

Chris caught Lance’s eye and gave him a wink, getting a grin in return from Lance as he popped the tab on his drink and made a mental note to run to the store later and get some coffee and more fruit. Pepsi and Dr. Pepper were good for the caffeine, but Lance really enjoyed a good cup of coffee in the morning and he knew Chris did too.

 

 


	56. Chapter 56

 

~~~~56~~~~

 

After breakfast everyone went into the living room to help Charlie and Mike do fan mail, and soon everyone but JC wound up sitting in the floor amid mail bags and piles of paper. JC was sitting Indian style on the couch, watching the others and putting off starting mail just a little longer when Justin said he expected Brit to call.

JC immediately volunteered to go get Justin’s backpack so they would hear it if Justin’s phone rang, and when he got back he sat down on the couch again with the backpack next to him, still not getting busy on mail. He sat there watching the others for almost a minute before he decided he could kill some time by checking the messages on his voice mail. He dug his cell out of Justin’s bag to start playing with it, trying to remember how to make it tell him what he wanted to know. JC finally figured it out and found that there were a couple dozen messages on it, and he was going through the list of numbers that had called him to see if any were important when the phone buzzed in his hands making him drop it in his lap in surprise.

Justin and Chris both laughed while Lance and Joey both grinned at how fast JC had dropped the phone, and JC gave them a wry grin as he picked up the phone again, turning it on to put it to his ear. "Hello?"

"Hey, sweetie!" a male voice said, making JC’s eyes go wide as a happy grin bloomed on his face. There was only one man who called him ‘sweetie’ – mostly because he insisted JC was the sweetest man alive – and JC hadn’t heard from him in much too long.

"Jake?!" JC asked, obviously delighted. "Is that really you?"

Justin grinned and went back to reading fanmail, remembering that JC had mentioned he really wanted to talk to Jake but he couldn’t find his number.

Jake did a fairly good Austin Powers impression as he replied, "Yeah, baby," then he went on in a more normal tone, "It took me forever to track you down, sweets. You’ve got more old phone numbers than any other fairy in America, I swear!"

JC laughed. "You know how it is, Jake. Some idiot gives my number out and then they give it out to other folks and then I have to have Joanna switch me over again. How have you been? I was just thinking about you last night, I wanted to call you but I left my not-so-black book on the bus I think – well, I _hope_ – and I couldn’t think of anyone I could get your number from except your boss. I didn’t really think that’d be a good idea."

Jake chuckled. "No, it wouldn’t. He’s so mad at me right now he probably would have given you the wrong number, if he didn’t just tell you to piss off."

JC giggled. "What’d you do, let somebody dance naked on the bar again?"

Chris laughed, drawing a quick grin from JC before he looked back down at his knees to listen as Jake, suddenly sounding serious, said, "I don’t think I should tell you about it."

JC’s grin faded at that, quite sure it had something to do with Tony, and he was quiet a long moment before he said softly, "Jake, not knowing would be worse than anything you might tell me ‘cause then I’d have to call him to check on him. He’s treated me like crap for a while now, but he used to be one of my best friends and I don’t think I could take making him cry twice in one week. Just tell me what happened, hon, please?"

Justin was surprised to hear Tony had cried when JC talked to him, but he figured that explained why JC had seemed upset when he finished talking to Tony. No matter what Tony had done to JC, Justin knew JC would still hate hurting him. Justin didn’t really notice JC call Jake ‘hon’, but Chris and Lance both did and exchanged a surprised look over the mail bags they were going through as they wondered just how close JC and Jake were.

Jake sighed. "Well, there was a bit of an incident at the club just before closing Wednesday morning, a fight. Tony’s okay, he just got his ass kicked by a fairy who heard him trashing you a bit too loud." JC closed his eyes and sighed, the soft sound evidently loud enough for Jake to hear since Jake immediately went on, "It’s not your fault, sweetie, he wanted someone to beat him up. I didn’t hurt him too badly, just knocked some sense into him."

"‘ _I_ ’?!" JC repeated incredulously, his eyes snapping open. "You beat him up?!"

Justin grinned suddenly and said loudly, "Thanks, Jake!"

Lance shook his head slightly at that and JC gave Justin an exasperated look before he looked back down at his lap to listened as Jake sheepishly said, "Well, yeah. I gave him a black eye, a busted lip and a bloody nose, but give him a week or two and he’ll be good as new. My boss isn’t upset as much about the fight as he is that the ass threw a beer mug at me and hit the mirror behind the bar. And tell your friend he’s welcome."

JC closed his eyes again, regret obvious on his face as he said quietly, "I’m _really_ sorry, Jake. I’ll cover the damages if he doesn’t."

Chris, Lance, Joey, and Justin all frowned then, wondering why JC felt like it was his fault as Jake replied firmly, "No, you will not! The ass got drunk out of his tree and busted up a club and he can damn sure pay for it himself." Jake paused and then went on more gently, "It wasn’t your fault, sweetie. You can’t live his life for him. He’s known he was driving you away for a while now, he used to talk to me about it when he got drunk enough."

"But he did it because I—" JC started to say, then broke off when Jake interrupted him.

"Joshua, stop it, please. It’s not your fault. Tony’s a grown man who knew he had pushed you too far and was just waiting for you to leave. He expected to lose you ‘cause he knows he doesn’t deserve you, not after how he’s treated you. He admitted as much the next day when he apologized to me and promised to go pay for the mirror. He may have by now, I had last night off so I haven’t seen my boss since Tony told me he would. Tony’s where I finally got your new number, sweetie."

JC was quiet a long moment before he asked softly, "You asked him for my number?"

"No," Jake replied, "I’ve been trying to find out what it was for a few days without luck, but I hadn’t asked him. He brought it to me this morning when he dropped off some boxes for you – mostly clothes and CDs he said – and Bandit. He said he thought you’d like to keep in touch with me, and wanted me to tell you he wouldn’t bother you again."

JC blinked, confused and more than a little surprised. "I didn’t expect to get any of my stuff back so that was nice of him, but why did he bring Bandit to you?!"

Justin looked up quickly yet again, his eyebrows going up in surprise even as he grinned and watched JC, glad to hear Jake had Bandit. JC had told him the other night that his biggest regret about his last visit to Tony was that he hadn’t taken the dog because he was sure Tony would get rid of him and JC was going to really miss him. Justin knew JC loved dogs and had already decided they would get another, and that JC wouldn’t have to leave it when they toured either. Justin had put up with Busta messing in his bunk for two tours, so he figured the other guys could either learn to live with JC’s dog or give JC and Justin the two-man bus. Justin wouldn’t mind changing buses if it meant having JC all to himself all day every day, even though he’d miss the other guys.

Joey, Mike, and Charlie were listening to JC as they worked, but Chris and Lance were pretty much ignoring the fan mail in their hands as they watched JC and Justin and tried to figure out what was going on. Seeing Justin smile reassured them though so Lance looked down to read the letter in his hands, hoping Justin would ask JC about it in front of them so they would know what happened without having to pry.

Jake replied, "Well Josh, when he came by this morning to ask if he could bring some boxes over, he told me he’s selling his house and moving back into his apartment in LA. I immediately wondered what he’d do with your dog, so I asked him if he could have pets there. He said he could but that it wouldn’t be fair to Bandit to make him live on the third floor with no yard or company, so he was giving him away. I thought he was being an ass to do that since you spent so much of what little time off you had with Bandit and that trainer, and I asked Tony if I could have him. I was surprised when he said yes, but he floored me when he said that he knows you love the dog more than you do him, and that he hoped you would take him with you when I saw you again. About half an hour later he was here with Bandit, a bag of food and a box of Bandit’s toys, and he gave me his papers too and the address of a little pet store where he prepaid Bandit’s food for the next two weeks." Jake paused a moment, then added, "And don’t worry, sweetie, I know how busy you are so Gary and I’ll keep him if you can’t, that way you can visit him any time you like. He seems to like it here well enough."

"I— I’d like to have him, Jake. I wanted to take him with me when I left last time, but I was afraid to try it," JC said quietly, sounding a bit ashamed. "I’ve been worried about him since I spoke to Tony. I knew he wouldn’t keep him long after I told him I wasn’t coming back."

"Bandit’s _yours_ , sweetie, he always has been, I just took him so you’d know where he was and that he’s safe. He’s a great dog, it’s no problem at all to keep him for you however long you need me to. I can even bring him to you when you’re ready for him, okay?" Jake asked, trying to be cheerful.

"We’re going to be in California soon," JC answered, "I can take a few hours off and come get him then, if that’s okay. I know he’ll behave himself on the bus, the trainer I took him to is one of the best and taught him a lot of things just because she knew I’m on tour a lot. I had planned to take him with me after that, but I never had the guts to tell Tony I wanted to take Bandit with me."

"That’ll be great, we can’t wait to see you!" Jake replied happily. "Bandit looks up every time the door opens to see who it is, and I _know_ he’s not looking for Tony. When he came over with the last of your CDs Bandit wouldn’t go to him for Tony to say goodbye until Tony had called him several times, and even then he obviously didn’t want to." Jake chuckled, then added, "I think Bandit remembers that the only times he came over here before he was with you, so he thinks you’ll be here soon too."

"And I will too, in only a week," JC said with a sudden smile. "He’s always so happy to see me again that I hate leaving him behind. Thanks for taking him in, Jake. I don’t know what I’d do without you."

Jake chuckled. "You’d manage, sweets, you always do. Now, tell me everything... Tony went on and on while he was drunk about how you’d finally gotten over he-who-Tony-will-not-name and ran off with a roadie, but I know that is so not my Joshua! I want the real scoop."

JC looked across the room at Mike and Charlie, grinning. "Are you _sure_ I didn’t run off with a roadie, hon? We’ve got some guys working for us who are pretty tempting, especially two we just hired." Mike and Charlie both looked up in surprise at that and JC winked at them, making them both blush as Chris, Lance, Joey, and Justin all laughed.

Jake laughed out loud. "Oh sure! Joshie Chasez running off with a _roadie_ after six years of not even looking at them?! You’d sooner run off with a woman!"

JC laughed. "You sound so sure of yourself! I hate to burst your bubble, hon, but he _could_ be considered a roadie since he’s always on the road with me," JC said, looking at Justin who grinned back at him. "He’s my best fri—"

"Joshua!" Chris said loudly, "Don’t you dare start singing that song, I’m _sure_ Jake gets the picture!"

JC stuck his tongue out at Chris, then listened with a grin while Jake laughed and then asked, "Justin finally got his head out of his ass and dumped the brat?!"

JC shook his head and smiled, looking down again. "No, he was never really with Brit to begin with. It’s a long story, but the gist of it is we’ve been in love with each other since before the group, but we were both too scared to say anything."

Jake was quiet a minute, then sounded awed as he said, "Damn, you’ve shared a tour bus for _six years_ with the man you love and he loves you too, but neither of you had an idea the other was bi?!"

"I know, we’re pitiful, aren’t we?" JC said, chuckling. "And we’re both gay, not bi."

Chris laughed. "Like that matters! You never really notice anybody else, male or female."

JC grinned at Chris as Jake chuckled and said, "Josh, sweetie, you two so need those ‘ _I_ _’_ _m with stupid_ ’ t-shirts."

JC snorted. "Gee, thanks, Jake. I love to hear my best friends tell me I’m stupid."

The others all laughed at that, even Jake, then Jake asked, "Who all are you with, Josh? That sounded like quite few people helping me laugh at you."

JC grinned. "The guys and Mike and Charlie, a couple of friends who are going to be touring with us from now on and helping out. And yeah, they seem to all agree with you."

"Hey," Justin said, grinning, "I didn’t say that."

"Good," JC replied with a smirk, "because he said you were stupid too, baby."

"But he doesn’t even know me!" Justin exclaimed, and JC just grinned, listening to Jake laughing.

Chris smirked. "Sounds like he knows you pretty well to me, kid, even if hasn’t ever met you."

JC had to laugh then, and Jake still sounded amused as he said, "I’d like to point out I said you needed those t-shirts, not that you’re stupid!"

JC rolled his eyes. "Jake honey, saying we both need ‘ _I_ _’_ _m with stupid_ ’ t-shirts _is_ saying we’re stupid!"

Lance chuckled, shaking his head, and Chris smirked at JC as he asked, "Is Jake the one who got you that shirt you mentioned that you can’t wear without outing yourself?"

JC grinned and nodded. "Yeah, he did. It says ‘ _Let_ _’_ _s get one thing straight, I_ _’_ _m not_ _’_ , but I’ve never worn it anywhere."

Lance laughed. "I hope not, that’s even worse than the one you’re wearing!"

Jake chuckled and then asked, "What does your t-shirt have on it, Josh?"

JC grinned. "It’s bright purple and it says ‘ _My boyfriend can kick your ass_ _’_."

"That sounds like you, for sure. I’ve got some new ones for you when you come too. You’ll like them, sweetie, and now you can wear them when you’re not in public at least," Jake said, still sounding amused and happy.

JC grinned even wider, his blue eyes sparkling happily. "Oh, presents! What do they say?"

"You’ll have to wait and see for yourself," Jake replied with a laugh.

JC made a face. "You’re mean, making me wait a whole week to find out."

Jake just laughed and changed the subject, asking, "So, how are you really doing, Josh? You sound really happy."

JC beamed, nodding as he looked down at his knees. "I am, Jake, happier than I’ve ever been. Justin’s everything I’ve wanted and needed for so long and so much more that I didn’t even dare to hope for. I’m the luckiest guy _ever_."

"Nope!" Justin piped up then, giving JC a smug grin when JC looked up at him in surprise. "You _are_ pretty lucky since you get me and we all know I’m a hot guy, but I get you so I win, hands down."

Chris laughed. "Juppy, dude, rein in the ego a bit, okay?"

JC chuckled then as Justin smirked at Chris, saying, "Hey man, it’s just the truth! I got an ugly plaque back home that says I’m the male hottie of the year, and you gotta admit I am luckier than Josh! My man is seriously gorgeous; millions of people all over the world wish they were me for just one day, much less a night."

Chris laughed. "Okay, I’ll give you that one kid."

JC chuckled again, shaking his head as Jake said, "I think I like Justin, he’s knows he’s a lucky man. How are the other guys taking you two finally hooking up? Since they’re with you joking about it, can I assume they took it well?"

JC smiled and nodded again, looking down again. "Yeah, they’re all happy for us, they’re the best friends anyone could ask for. Lynn is even happy, which floored me."

"That’s great!" Jake said. "It’s about time things started going your way sweetie, you’ve –" Jake broke off suddenly as JC heard a single bark he thought he recognized as Bandit, then another dog started barking loudly. "Just a sec Josh, Callie says there’s someone at the door."

"No problem hon, take your time," JC answered with a smile, then listened to Jake tell Callie to be quiet without making a dent in her barking. Jake put him on hold then so JC looked over at Justin and said, "Jake had to go answer the door. Is there any decent mail?"

Justin grinned. "Just fan stuff so far, babe, nothing you’d want to read yet."

JC loved the fans and really appreciated all they had done for the guys, but they all knew it made him uncomfortable to read how the girls idolized them. JC did read some anyway because he felt like he should, but he really enjoyed the fan mail from the fans who had things to say instead of just gushing about how perfect he was so the others usually set aside the letters like that for him. It didn’t matter that most like that were sent to Chris or Lance, they had long ago decided fan mail to any one of them was fan mail for all of them.

"Some of these are interesting," Mike said then, giving JC a grin as he went on, "Those letters to you and Justin together are pretty much like I thought they’d be when Joanna said not to show them to you. You guys probably don’t want to read them, a few are pretty dirty."

JC laughed as Justin grinned and said, "You’re kidding."

Mike shook his head, grinning at Justin. "Nope! Evidently a few people think you’re not only together but you need ideas for how to keep yourselves occupied on those long bus rides too, so they’re sending them to you. I’ve read two so far that are really, um, explicit."

Charlie gave Mike a dirty look. "You don’t have to _read_ them, Mike."

Mike smirked. "But I’ve already learned something!"

JC laughed again and was about to say something when he heard Jake suddenly say, "Back, sweetie! Sorry about that, Gary locked himself out again."

JC grinned. "You’re going to have to put the key back under your rosebush. I won’t be needing it, but I bet Gary used it more than I did anyway."

Jake laughed. "You’re right, he did, but I doubt he’d remember the key was there anymore, he’s getting old."

JC laughed, knowing Gary had just turned twenty-two. "Oh yeah, he’s _ancient_."

"I resemble that remark!" Chris said, not even looking up from the fan letter he was reading, and JC distantly heard Gary’s voice on the phone almost at the same time as he said, "I heard that, old man!"

JC just grinned and listened to Jake laugh again and say, "Yeah, so?" just as Lance grinned at Chris and said, "No you don’t sweetheart, you’ll never be old."

JC watched Chris beam at Lance as he listened to the phone, hearing Gary say, "You’re being bitchy," obviously moving closer to the phone as he talked, then he made a little noise JC could clearly tell was very near the phone before Gary said softly, "You know I _love_ it when you get bitchy, Kimmy."

JC chuckled, figuring Gary must be leaning over Jake now as loud as he sounded, then he heard Jake snort and say, "And you know I hate it when you call me Kimmy! Now get off of me, you little brat!"

"Make me!" Gary said smugly.

Jake made an annoyed noise, and then JC listened with a little grin to rustling sounds and muffled ‘oof’ noises as they struggled, wondering who would win. Gary was just a few inches over five feet tall and might weigh a hundred pounds while Jake was six foot four and weighed over twice as much, but Jake was so careful not to take advantage of his size and manhandle Gary that the smaller man usually won when they wrestled. Jake’s annoyed grumbling soon turned into much happier noises though and JC grinned a little wider, thinking Gary must have decided to try for another kind of wrestling, then Jake chuckled suddenly and it was quiet a moment.

Jake sounded a little breathless when he finally said, "Now let me finish talking to Josh."

JC heard a soft snort then and then Gary said, "If I’m not gonna be getting laid until he hangs up, then I get to talk to him too!"

"Okay," Jake replied, obviously amused. "Sweetie, Gary wants to talk to you."

JC chuckled and said, "Sure."

"Hey Josh!" Gary said, sounding cheerful. "I wanted to say I’m proud of you, you did good!"

JC smiled. "Thanks, Gary. I’ve been dreading telling him, but it wasn’t nearly as hard as I’d thought it would be. I should have done that a year ago."

"No Josh," Gary said, suddenly serious, "you should have done that _three_ years ago. The first time he hurt you, you should have been out of there. You’re too good to let anyone treat you like he did."

JC looked over at Justin then, smiling a little wider. "Justin keeps telling me the same thing."

Justin grinned at JC then but Gary sounded surprised as he asked, "You told Justin about Tony?!"

JC’s eyebrows went up. "Of course I told him, Gary. I tell Jup everything."

Chris and Lance exchanged a look, wondering if JC really did tell Justin everything.

"And he’s okay with it?" Jake asked in the background, obviously surprised too.

"Well, I had to make him promise me not to go kill Tony with his bare hands, but other than that, yeah," JC grinned at Chris and Lance when they both laughed at that, then went on, "Justin’s been amazing about everything."

Justin blushed, unable to help a little smile.

"Does he push you around?" Gary asked warily.

"No, Gary," JC said, smiling tolerantly.

"Has he ever made you do anything you didn’t want to?" Gary asked after a moment, obviously still not convinced. JC had put up with a lot from Tony – Jake had sat up with JC and held him while he cried more than one night – and Gary knew both academically and from personal experience that people who have been in an abusive relationship for any length of time often wound up being abused again. JC had always insisted Tony didn’t abuse him, but Jake and Gary had both decided a long time ago JC was just lying to himself. Neither of them had ever understood how JC could live with the way Tony treated him. Gary had told JC once he would have knifed Tony in his sleep a long time ago.

"No, Gary," JC repeated, then went on, "Justin hardly ever asks me to do anything, and he won’t ask at all if he thinks I don’t want to do it. I mean, yeah, he might try to persuade me to go skinny dipping or ride a rollercoaster or something else he knows I’ll like even if I’d never do it without him asking me to, but he would never try to make me do anything I really don’t enjoy."

Chris chuckled at that while Justin grinned and opened another letter, wondering if there were any rollercoasters nearby. Everyone in the group liked them but JC, and he’d just admitted he did too, really. Justin knew JC would hold the hand of whichever of them was next to him all the way through the ride, unable to keep from laughing because it was fun even if he was scared, and that when it was over he would be in happy-spazz mode, bouncing around like a fool. Justin loved it when JC got like that, it gave him an excuse to play too.

Gary was quiet a minute, thinking about what little he knew of Justin, then he asked, "Can I ask you a personal question, Josh?"

JC’s eyebrows went up. "Sure, ask away."

"Is he good to you in bed?"

JC heard Jake snort and say, "Nosy."

"Yes Gary, he’s good to me," JC answered then, smiling. "Justin is _nothing_ like Tony. Justin would rather make me happy than do anything else. He knows me better than anyone and somehow knows what I like and what I don’t without even asking, and if I don’t like something it might as well cease to exist because he’s not going to do it. He’d do anything for me Gary, but he’d _not_ do anything for me too, if that makes sense. He treats me like I’m the best thing that ever happened to him." JC realized then that he’d said that same thing to Tony and smiled a bit wider because it was true. Justin treated JC like making him happy was Justin’s whole reason to live.

"That’s only ‘cause you are, babe," Justin interjected then, glancing up from a letter to give JC a quick smile before he looked down again, not even noticing that Chris, Joey, and Lance were all looking at him.

They had known JC’s word was law to Justin, but to hear JC as much as say so to someone they didn’t even know in front of Justin without Justin getting the least bit upset made both Joey and Chris respect the kid a bit more. Justin was dense about a lot of things but he seemed to know so many things about JC by instinct and he understood and accepted them without batting an eye.

Lance was smiling and thinking that Justin was probably the only guy in the world who didn’t mind his lover telling another man that he was completely whipped. Lance’s smile widened as he thought Justin probably didn’t even see it that way. Justin just wanted JC happy and didn’t care what he had to do to achieve that. Lance thought JC was one of the luckiest people he knew. Almost as lucky as Justin.

"Does he write music about you?" Gary asked after another moment, changing the subject.

"Yeah," JC answered, grinning. "He says a lot of what he writes has been about me, just like I write about him."

"Gary," Jake said then, "that song on Celebrity you like was written by Justin." Jake paused, then added for JC’s benefit, "’ _Something Like You_ ’ is Gary’s favorite off the new CD, I think we’ve listened to it a million times."

"Was that one for you?" Gary asked JC, sounding surprised again.

"Yeah," JC answered again, his grin widening.

"Well, tell him I love it, it’s a great song," Gary said then, finally sounding happy again. "I think I’m gonna like him, the man who wrote that will know how to treat you." Jake and JC both chuckled at that as Gary went on, "Now I’ll let you get back to whatever you were doing. I’m going to go do something illegal with my boyfriend before he has to go to work, and then I’m going to get all dolled up and go flirt with him in public."

JC laughed. "Have fun, and give Jake a hug for me. Bye."

"Bye," Gary said, and then handed the phone to Jake again.

"Be sure to bring Justin when you come after Bandit, we want to meet him," Jake said, then gasped softly and added, "I have to go. Bye, sweetie!"

"Bye," JC said, chuckling, then the line went dead as Jake hung up.

 

 


	57. Chapter 57

 

~~~~ 57 ~~~~

 

JC flipped the phone shut, smiling, and looked at Justin. "They want to meet you, baby, and I’m supposed to tell you Gary loves ‘ _Something Like You_ ’. Jake says he thinks they’ve heard it a million times."

Justin grinned. "I can’t wait to meet them myself. Did I hear right that Jake has Bandit now?"

JC nodded, his blue eyes sparkling as he grinned happily. "He sure does! Tony’s selling his house and moving back to his place in LA, so he boxed up all the stuff I’d left at his place and took it over to Jake’s, and while he was there he said something about giving Bandit away. Jake asked if he could have him and Tony said yes and then gave Bandit to Jake, plus all of his stuff and his food." JC paused, then added, "Tony told Jake I loved the dog more than I ever did him, and that he hoped I’d take Bandit next time I saw him."

Justin made a ‘huh’ noise, then said, "Well, I guess Tony’s not quite as big an asshole as I gave him credit for being. Knowing how much you love the dog. I was sure he’d try to use Bandit to get you to come see him."

JC nodded. "I expected that too, but I promised I wouldn’t go see him and I won’t, not even for Bandit. I figured he’d sell him when he realized I wasn’t coming back, if he didn’t just take him to the pound."

"Why do you think he gave him to Jake?" Chris asked, looking curious.

JC said, "Well, I--" He broke off, and then looked down at the phone in his hands a long moment before he looked back up at Chris. "Tony’s hurt me more than anyone else I’ve ever known, but he _wanted_ me to have Bandit or he never would have mentioned him to Jake. He knows as well as I do that Jake would never let him give away my dog if he had a chance to stop him."

"If he’s your dog, why has Tony kept him?" Lance asked, curious.

JC shrugged. "I decided I wanted a puppy a couple years ago, but we were so busy I really didn’t think I should get a pup ‘cause I wouldn’t have time to spend with it like I should. We had a week off not long after that and I flew out to see Tony, and while I was there I mentioned to Gary one day that I wanted a dog but I didn’t have time to housebreak a puppy or start it’s training. Gary suggested I find a breeder or trainer willing to do all of that for me, and encouraged me to get a dog if that was what I wanted. I started looking on the net while Tony was out with some friends of his that night, and within a few days I’d found a breeder and a great trainer, and by the end of the week I had bought Bandit. Jake and Gary agreed to pick him up when the breeder had him housetrained and started on basic commands, but Tony had a fit and said he’d do it. He did, and then insisted that he keep Bandit for me because he was already ‘attached’ to him." JC rolled his eyes when he said that, then grinned and added, "Jake says Bandit still doesn’t come to Tony unless Tony forces him."

Justin had been thinking about what else JC had said while he was on the phone – as long as JC was getting Bandit back, Justin didn’t care why JC thought Tony had done it – and he asked, "What did Tony do to make Jake beat him up, and what damages were there?"

Justin just could not see Tony beating Jake up or even holding his own against him, so he didn’t bother to ask if Jake was okay. From what JC had told him, he knew that Jake worked out religiously and was ‘a huge version of Drew Lachey, only he’s an Indian’. Drew was built like a brick outhouse and easily a match for anyone Justin knew, even if he was shorter than Lance, so a big guy built like him would be someone Justin did not want pissed at him. Hell, Justin didn’t even want someone like that _mildly annoyed_ at him. The guy might accidentally break him in half or something.

JC snorted softly. "Tony was drunk and started trashing me at the club, and when he wouldn’t quit or leave Jake kicked his ass. Tony threw a beer mug at Jake at some point and busted up the mirror behind the bar."

"Did Tony hurt him?" Lance asked, wondering why Justin hadn’t asked that.

JC looked surprised and laughed. "I didn’t even ask, but I’m sure he didn’t. I’ve _seen_ Tony go after Jake, and it’s no contest. One time I remember Tony hit him and Jake decked him, waited for Tony to get up and did it again, and then he told Tony that if he stood up again he’d break his jaw. Tony didn’t get up a third time." JC grinned, and then sobered slightly as he went on, "Jake has been pissed at Tony for around three years now. Tony hurt me one night and then a week or so later Tony and Gary got into it over how Tony treated me."

JC paused, then added, "Jake and Gary hadn’t been together very long then, and Jake beat Tony up pretty bad after he gave Gary a black eye, even though Gary gave as good as he got. Tony won’t go within twenty feet of Gary when he’s sober anymore ‘cause he knows Gary is itching for a fight and Jake told Tony that he’d hold him responsible if they tangled again. Jake’s seven years older than Gary and he’s just a little protective even though Gary’s been on his own since he was sixteen and can handle just about any scrape he can get himself into."

Justin chuckled, shaking his head, but Chris looked upset and asked, "Josh, Tony’s been hurting you for three years? I thought you said it was only bad between you two for the last year or so?" Three years ago was around the time they were breaking from Lou, and that made it even worse as far as Chris was concerned. JC was enough of a wreck back then without adding Tony’s crap.

JC flushed slightly, his grin disappearing. "Well, yeah, the first time he hurt me was a little over three years ago now, but it’s not like he did it often back then. I mean, I might have seen him five times a year and he never hurt me when he was sober, and never hit me until about a year and a half ago, so..."

Justin started flipping through letters again without really reading them, only the fact his eyes were dark with emotion showing how he felt. Justin had asked about a lot of the things Tony did to JC the night he found out Tony had hurt him before, and then had held JC while he told him about ‘vacations’ spent being treated like crap. Just thinking about it made Justin seethe. He had spent more than a few minutes over the last two days wishing he hadn’t promised JC he wouldn’t go near Tony, and had spent the rest of the time doing his best not to think about Tony at all.

Something JC had said caught Lance’s attention so he asked, "He hurt you, but he didn’t hit you?"

JC looked down at his lap, flushing even more as he said quietly, "Yeah."

"Josh, if he didn’t—" Chris started and then broke off abruptly, looking at JC with concern obvious on his face, then he tried again. "If he didn’t hit you, what did he do?"

JC sighed, still not looking at them for a long moment before he shrugged and said, "Well, if I’m going to tell you, I guess I should start by saying that before we even got back from Europe, I knew Tony was into some things I really didn’t like. He never tried any of it with me until we got really drunk one night and—" JC broke off and then went on quickly, trying to get it over with as he said, "Well, I was drunk enough to tell him he could do something he’d wanted to do for a while and said would be really great, but it wasn’t and he hurt me." JC bit his lip and then added, "I was still drunk – or maybe high, Gary insisted later that Tony slipped something in my drink – and it scared me pretty bad that he’d enjoyed it even though he was hurting me, so when he finally fell asleep I ran. Jake and Gary got home about an hour later and found me sitting on Jake’s porch in the rain in nothing but a bathrobe, cold and still more than a little scared Tony was going to wake up and come looking for me."

JC’s voice shook a bit by the time he finished, and everyone but Justin frowned, thinking it sounded like JC was still pretty scared of Tony. Justin didn’t pay attention to the others’ reactions though, he just stood and moved over to the couch, bodily scooping JC up in his arms and then sitting down where JC had been with JC in his lap. JC gave Justin a grateful little smile and kissed him softly, then looked back over at the others and waited for the questions he knew would be coming.

"Why did you go to Jake?" Chris asked. "Didn’t you say you had just met him then?"

"Well," JC said, sounding much more calm, "the time I had visited Tony before that, Jake had to help me take him home because Tony passed out at the club and I had been drinking too so I couldn’t drive. Jake told me then that he knew about me because Tony likes to talk when he’s drunk – which is about half the time – and then Jake and I had talked for a few hours. Jake has carried Tony home a lot and knew his way around Tony’s house as well as I did then, and he’s not out either and knows what it would do to all of us if Tony outed me so he’s really careful about it. Since Jake works at Tony’s favorite club he usually keeps an eye on him for me, and keeps him from telling people anything he shouldn’t when he’s drunk."

"Did you tell Jake what happened that night?" Chris asked, his brown eyes dark and unreadable.

"Jake has been around and it was pretty obvious I’d been—" JC broke off, then said, "Well, as soon as we got inside he wanted to call the cops, but Gary and I convinced him that was a bad idea so he decided to just go over there and beat the shit out of Tony." JC managed a wry grin then but it faded almost immediately. "I asked him to promise me he wouldn’t, and he did after a few minutes of arguing, mostly to humor me I think, I was still pretty upset. That’s when he asked me how I could let Tony get away with rape."

JC felt Justin flinch when he said that, but he’d already told Justin all about it and knew there was nothing he could say that would make Justin feel better about it. "I had to explain to them that Tony had gotten me drunk and lied to me to get me to let him blindfold me and tie me up, and then he had hurt me for the fun of it before he fucked me, but it wasn’t rape. I had agreed to bondage and sex, and held out my hands like a damn fool for him to put the cuffs on me."

JC looked down at where Justin’s left hand rested on his thigh and began to fiddle with Justin’s ring as he went on. "Gary is young, but he’s been around and knew what I was going through. He took over and had Jake go get my clothes for me while Tony was still out cold and then helped me get cleaned up and take care of a few things while Jake was gone, doing his best the whole time to convince me not to see Tony again. When Jake got back he and Gary talked while I got dressed, and then Gary asked me to stay with them a few days. I was tired and still kind of scared and I knew they would never let Tony hurt me, so I said yes. I wound up spending almost a week with them, getting to know Gary and Jake better and just getting my head on straight again while I tried to decide what to do about Tony..."

JC trailed off, thinking a moment, then said, "I only had two days off left when I finally asked Jake if he knew why Tony hadn’t called and Jake admitted that he’d told Tony not to come near me until I went to him. Gary said that he hoped I wouldn’t go back to Tony at all then, and Jake said I was welcome to stay with them whenever I wanted to. I thanked them for the offer but I’d pretty much gotten past being scared of Tony by then so I went to see him about an hour later. When he opened his door he didn’t even let me come inside before he was literally on his knees, crying and begging me to forgive him and promising he’d never hurt me again. I believed him." JC shrugged, then added, "He didn’t break his promise for almost a year that first time."

Lance looked at JC for a long moment and then asked, "Josh, sweetheart, why did you stay with him for so long? From what you’ve said Jake and Gary have been trying to make you see how badly he treated you for, well, _years_."

JC smiled a little sadly. "I didn’t want to see it, like I was in love with Justin for over a year that I’m sure of before I admitted to myself that I wanted a lot more than friendship from him. I stayed with Tony because he really does love me in his own admittedly twisted way and I care about him, and because I felt bad for taking advantage of him when I knew I didn’t love him. I mean, you guys have heard some of the bad stuff, but not about the good times. I wasn’t ever in love with him, but for years he was a really close friend who loved me even though he knew I was gay. I really needed that then."

Joey finally looked up from the neat stack of letters he’d been reading then and said calmly, "Josh, you know I love you and that I would do anything for you, but please don’t ever ask me to be nice to Lucca again."

JC looked even more sad as he said quietly, "I won’t." JC was silent a moment, looking at Joey and then Lance and Chris before he added softly, "I’m sorry."

Joey looked a little confused, his brow furrowing. "What are _you_ sorry for?! He’s the bastard who abused you, not the other way around."

"I’m sorry for upsetting you, I shouldn’t have told you guys," JC clarified. "Justin..." He trailed off, looking down at where he still absently played with Justin’s hand, taking in the way Justin’s strong hands contrasted with his own more delicate fingers, then he looked back up. "Well, I don’t like telling him – he should _never_ have had to learn about all that stuff – but he wants to know and somehow knows exactly what to say or do to make me feel better, and it helps to be able to finally tell someone about it. Jake knows about a lot of it in a vague sort of way, but I couldn’t really talk to him about it. He sees Tony almost every day and I didn’t want Jake to kill him."

Joey stood, frowning, and walked over to sit on the couch next to JC and Justin, looking into JC’s eyes. "Josh, please don’t ever feel bad about telling us. You need to talk about it, and if we’re going to be closer to you we need to know so—" Joey broke off, then finished, "Well, so we don’t screw up and bring back bad memories."

JC moved one hand to cover Joey’s as he smiled. "You couldn’t, Joe, not any of you. I know you don’t want to hurt me any more than Justin does, and you would never try to force me into anything I wasn’t comfortable with." JC was silent a moment, obviously considering what to say before he continued, "Tony has a _lot_ of problems, he’s a danger to himself as much as he is to anyone else. He sleeps with anyone that strikes his fancy, he drinks like a fish, he has all the wrong friends, and he likes to get into fights when he’s smashed. You’re not like that at all, Joe, and neither are Chris or Lance. I fully expect that one day I’ll hear that somebody knifed Tony, or he drank himself to death in some club."

Chris looked worried suddenly as Lance said softly, "Josh, please tell me you were careful when you had sex with him."

JC nodded quickly, looking over at Lance. "Oh yeah, always. He complained sometimes, but I never let him do anything unless he was wearing a condom. I know Tony wasn’t always safe with other people, but I’ve been tested twice since I saw him last and I’m clean, or I never would have let Justin near me, no matter how I feel. He’s safe and so are you guys."

Justin snorted softly and tightened his arms around JC. "Forget us, the important thing is _you_ _’_ _re_ safe, and you’re staying that way."

Chris, Joey, and Lance all nodded, then Chris suddenly realized something and said, "Josh, the way you were talking he was always the one doing you. Is he that stupid?"

JC laughed softly. "Yeah, it’s been pretty much a one way street between me and Tony since just after the second time he hurt me, almost two years ago. I figured out that if I topped he would be rougher on me later ‘cause he doesn’t like to let anyone have that much control over him, so I started to avoid the whole idea. He didn’t complain, so I usually wound up on my knees for him, one way or another."

Justin growled softly and said, "Anyone who wants to make love to you should at _least_ have the decency to look you in the eye while they do it. And I’m not gonna go off on him again, I just had to say that."

JC chuckled softly and let go of Joey’s hand to slide his arm around Justin’s waist so he could give him a squeeze just as Chris said, "Justin, it’s not that ba—"

"I don’t _care_ , Chris," Justin interrupted Chris in mid-word, looking calm and determined as he rested one hand on JC’s bare thigh again and the other on the small of JC’s back, pulling him just a bit closer. "It ain’t happening. The most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen is Josh’s eyes when we make love. I’m not missing out on that for anyone but him, and since he doesn’t like it, I doubt he’s going to ask."

JC smiled softly, looking into Justin’s eyes and idly toying at the collar of Justin’s t-shirt with his free hand. "I’m not about to, baby, I love watching you."

Justin returned the smile as JC lifted his hand from Justin’s collar to slide it around the back of his neck and kissed him, obviously in no hurry as he gently explored Justin’s mouth with his tongue. Justin’s right hand slid up the outside of JC’s bare thigh until he encountered the cutoff jean shorts JC still wore then slowly began to roam back towards JC’s knee while Lance, Joey, and Chris watched them kiss, all three thinking that there was probably a lot more they didn’t know about what JC had been through and wondering if they really _wanted_ to know.

The five of them had completely forgotten Mike and Charlie were still in the room, but neither of the teens minded. Charlie had scooted over to sit closer to Mike when JC had admitted to the others that Tony had first hurt him three years ago, and when JC said the word ‘rape’ Mike had felt Charlie shudder so he silently pulled Charlie into his lap and held him, trying to reassure him. Neither of them could really help but listen as JC kept talking and Charlie hid his face against Mike’s neck while the blond held him and stroked his hair, knowing Charlie really didn’t want to be in the room right now but also quite sure neither of them were going to get up and walk out. That would almost certainly make JC feel even worse and neither of them would do that if at all possible to avoid it, so Mike just held Charlie while they listened and Mike hoped JC wouldn’t go into too much detail.

Mike didn’t think Charlie could take hearing much more by the time Joey moved to the couch, and he was wishing for some good excuse for them to get out of the room so he could take Charlie’s mind off of all he’d just heard. Charlie wasn’t in love with JC or anything, but he had idolized the five of them for a long time, and hearing about how JC had been treated wasn’t something Charlie enjoyed in the least.

Mike didn’t like it either, but he wasn’t nearly as innocent as Charlie was and he knew that what had happened to JC happened all too often. JC was safe now and not going to be back in that situation, and knowing that was enough to for Mike to be able to distance himself from it, though if he happened to meet Tony Lucca the man would remember him for a long time afterwards. Mike planned to do his best to beat the worthless bastard to death.

JC finally pulled away from kissing Justin with a little smile and then said softly, "I love you."

Justin gave him a cocky grin. "I love you more."

JC grinned and gave Justin a quick kiss. "Not possible, baby, but I love the idea."

Justin chuckled and gave JC a squeeze, and when Lance cleared his throat and they both looked over at him to see him smiling as he said, "If you’ll work at fanmail for the next hour or so, I think we could take the rest of the afternoon off. The beach is beautiful today."

"Hey, great!" JC said, grinning happily at Lance.

JC completely missed the quick grin Justin gave Lance as he mouthed, "Thanks Poof," glad to change the subject even if it meant working.

Joey stood then to move back over to where he’d been sitting in the floor to get busy on mail again, and JC was watching him cross the floor when he noticed Charlie curled up in Mike’s lap out of the corner of his eye. JC gave Mike a concerned look, drawing the attention of the others to the two teens when he asked quietly, "Is he alright?"

"Yeah, he’s okay," Mike replied just as softly, and they were all surprised when Charlie didn’t move away even though he obviously had an audience now.

JC sighed almost inaudibly then and Justin rubbed his side reassuringly, sure JC was going to beat himself up over upsetting them even though they could have walked out any time the wanted to. Justin was proven right a moment later when JC said, "I’m _really_ sorry, I forgot you guys were here again."

"It’s okay," Mike said again, giving JC a reassuring smile as Charlie’s arms tightened around him.

JC shook his head. "No Mike, it’s not. You— _Neither_ of you should ever have to hear about things like that."

"It’s okay JC, really," Charlie said quietly then, not lifting his head or loosening his hold on Mike. “Mike doesn’t mind holding me."

Mike chuckled softly at that and kissed the top of Charlie’s head. "Understatement of the year, baby."

Charlie still didn’t move other than giving Mike a squeeze, but he sounded pretty normal as he went on. "And it’s not so much hearing what happened that bothered me as knowing it happened to _you_. You’re one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met and beautiful as can be, inside and out, and I just don’t understand how anyone – especially someone who said he loved you – could hurt you."

JC had blushed when Charlie said he was beautiful but before he had a chance to say anything Justin said, "I know how you feel, Charlie. It makes no sense to me either, especially since I knew Tony back when we were kids and I respected him. When Josh first told me he had been with Tony all this time I was actually relieved, sure Tony would have treated him right since I _thought_ Tony knew just how special Josh is. I was as wrong as I could be."

JC moved to sit next to Justin so he could see him better. "I don’t think Tony is really the guy we knew, Justin, not any more. He got into drugs and drinking too much, then he got in with the wrong kind of crowd when he moved to California and it changed him. He’s a different man now from who he was even two years ago, much less _seven_ years ago. He does things now that would make any sane person run screaming, but he thinks they are as normal as— Well, as two men holding hands in Frisco."

Chris chuckled, and Lance gave JC a wry grin as he asked, "So why didn’t you run screaming?"

JC laughed. "I did, and more than once. Tony usually made an effort after the second time – I walked out and was completely out of touch with everyone but Gary and Jake for almost three weeks – not to push me, but he’d forget himself sometimes and when he’d wake up I’d be gone again. Usually I just stayed at Jake’s a few days but there were a few times I got the three of us a suite in Frisco with one of my fake IDs and we spent my time off just roaming the city. Jake would play it straight while Gary and I went in drag, passing as girls even though I’m a bit tall for it. It was so much fun!"

JC’s sudden enthusiasm was contagious and the others were grinning too as he went on. "I mean, to be able to do anything I felt like doing and know that _nobody_ was going to know I was the one doing it was so liberating. Jake would watch and laugh as Gary goaded me into flirting with men I didn’t even _want_ to know just to prove that I could, or we would play and cut up while we were walking down the sidewalk. We did all sorts of simple things I can’t usually do like go to McDonalds, and we were as safe as I would have been with Lonnie following me around ‘cause _nobody_ would look at Jake and mess with his ‘girls’." JC smirked and went on, "I didn’t have to sign a single autograph or even lie to anyone because nobody suspected Josie Scott from Virginia was really JC Chasez of Nsync. We went in gay bars, straight bars, teenie clubs, it didn’t matter. If the club was jumping when we went by then we went in and danced with whoever wanted to dance and stayed until they chased us out."

Chris grinned. "Sounds like you really should go clubbing with us more often."

JC returned the grin. "Well, after we get some things I left with Gary I will."

Lance’s eyebrows went up at that and Joey asked, "You’re going to go out with _us_ dressed in drag? To straight clubs?!"

JC nodded, smirking. "Oh yeah! Then I can dance with Jup or sit in his lap or even kiss him until we’re both breathless and not have to worry about who sees us."

Justin grinned suddenly. “Think Gary would overnight you your stuff babe? There’s a few nice nightclubs here, and we’re gonna be at that thing tomorrow night..."

JC looked surprised, then nodded. "Yeah, baby, he would." JC looked over at the VCR to see what time it was, then picked up his cell and grinned at Lance. "How do I get this to do the caller ID thing for the last person who called?"

Lance chuckled. "Give it here, it’s easier for me to do it than to explain it." JC stood to take him the phone and then watched as Lance retrieved the number before he looked up at JC and asked, "Do you want me to add it to the memory?"

"Please!" JC said with a grin. "Put it on number one, I won’t be needing Justin’s number very often ‘cause I’ll be with him, and I have it memorized anyhow."

Lance chuckled and did as JC had asked, then offered him the phone. "There you go, Josh."

JC bent to give Lance a quick kiss on the forehead. "Thanks, Scoop," he said, then looked over at Justin and said, "I’m gonna go in our room while I talk to Gary, he should be home still. I’ll be back soon, okay baby?"

Justin nodded, giving JC a quick grin and moving back to where he’d been sitting in the floor near Chris. "If you take your time, I’ll even finish the mail and you won’t have to do any."

"Sounds like a plan to me." JC grinned and left the room, already dialing.

Lance and Chris both watched Justin as JC left and saw his grin disappear just as soon as he was sure JC was gone. Justin didn’t realize they were watching him and began opening another letter, his eyes dark and shuttered as he quickly and efficiently ripped into the envelope.

Lance watched Justin a moment longer before he asked softly, "Justin, are you okay?"

Justin looked up and nodded. "Yeah, I’ll be okay, Scoop. It’s not as hard to hear it the second time."

Charlie moved out of Mike’s lap then to sit next to him and start reading letters again, wanting to get it over with so he and Mike could go for a walk or something. Hanging out with the guys was really nice usually, but sometimes Charlie really wished they weren’t quite so open around them. He didn’t want to bring it up, but he was almost to the point he’d ask them if it was okay if he and Mike just left the room whenever the five of them started talking about something that Charlie felt was too personal.

Chris looked sad as he crawled over to Justin to sit next to him and slip an arm around his shoulders. "I don’t know how you can take all this, kid. I get the feeling that’s not the worst you’ve heard."

Justin gave Chris a smile, but his blue eyes were sad as he said, "No, that wasn’t the worst. Josh won’t tell you about all of it I’m sure, at least not yet. Tony’s a sadistic fuck and more than once when he was drunk or high he took advantage of the fact Josh sleeps pretty deeply." Justin looked down at his lap, and then looked up at Chris and then over at Joey and Lance as he said softly, "He’s not going to tell you, so I will. Don’t ever mess with his wrists if you’re wrestling with him, okay guys? Holding his hands doesn’t bother him at all, but if you grab his wrists – especially while he’s asleep -- I’m afraid it’ll bring back a lot of things I wish he could forget."

Chris sighed then as he lowered his head and closed his eyes, wishing he’d been able to protect JC even though he knew JC was a grown man and had to live his own life. JC was much too trusting for his own good, too willing to put somebody else’s happiness ahead of his own, and Chris wished suddenly that his friend was a little more selfish.

Lance nodded as Joey said quietly, "Is there anything else you think we should know, Jup? I was serious when I told Josh that I think we need to have at least some idea what happened so we wouldn’t do something to scare him. Chris and I both get a little wild sometimes and Scoop’s almost as bad as we are, but I get the feeling he’s not ready even to _see_ some things we do all the time."

Justin looked thoughtful a moment, then said, "Well, the main thing is not to ask him for something you think he might not want to do. He’s offered to let me do something that I didn’t do because I just got the feeling he didn’t want to, and when I asked him about it later and he admitted it scares the shit out of him. He wanted me to have the chance to try it if I wanted to, so he was going to do it anyway. That’s typical."

"If he _offers_ to do things that scare him, how do you know what’s okay with him and what’s not?" Chris asked then, looking back up at Justin.

Justin shrugged. "I just– I don’t know how to explain, I can just feel it. And I don’t mean he tenses up or anything, though I think he would if he were uncomfortable."

"Have you asked him to do anything that you think scared him yet?" Chris asked.

Justin shook his head. "No, I don’t ask him to do anything."

Lance looked confused. "Jup, you ask him to do stuff all the time."

"I meant in bed, Scoop," Justin answered with a little smile. "I kiss him until he gets impatient and takes over, or I get him to show or tell me what he wants. The first time he really didn’t seem to care if he enjoyed himself or not until he was sure I was, and when I asked as much while we were in that little hot tub in Nashville he said that he hadn’t had sex just for the fun of it in over a year." Justin suddenly grinned and added, "That’s changed though, now about half the time he gives me that gorgeous grin of his and I just hold on and try not to pass out again."

Chris laughed as Joey grinned and asked, "Jup, dude, you _passed out_?!"

Justin nodded, then smirked. "And I really wouldn’t mind doing it again."

Lance chuckled. "C’mon you two, start reading, or at least sorting. We’ve got to get all this done by Saturday evening, even if it means we waste the whole day Saturday."

Chris scooted back over to the bag of mail he’d been working on and Justin made a face as he picked up another letter at random to open it and read. Neither of them wanted to lose their Saturday, especially when Sunday was their last day of complete freedom for who knew how long.

 

 


	58. Chapter 58

 

~~~~ 58 ~~~~

 

JC listened to the phone ring as he walked towards the room he was sharing with Justin, and he had just closed their door behind him someone finally picked up. "Hey, whoever this is, make it quick!" Jake said, sounding out of breath and amused.

JC chuckled and moved to sit down on the edge of the bed. "Hi hon, is Gary around? I wanted to ask him to send me a few things."

"Oh hey!" Jake replied, "Yeah, he’s still here but he’s in the shower. Do you have time to call back in a few minutes, sweetie? I’d love to chat with you, but I’m running really late and I don’t want to push the boss right now."

JC nodded, then remembered he was on the phone. "That’d be great, I just wanted to be sure I caught him before he went to the club for the evening. Would you have him call me when he gets a chance? That’d be best I think, since I don’t have anything to do. There’s no hurry, we’re off all afternoon."

"Sure, sweetie," Jake said, "It’ll probably be about five minutes, I just heard him turn off the water. I hate to run, but I should already be at work right now and I’m not even dressed."

"Go then!" JC said with a soft laugh. "I’m hanging up right now, g’bye."

Jake chuckled. "Bye!"

JC closed his cell and sat there trying to decide whether or not he should go back in the living room with the others for a moment before he decided he’d much rather sit on the deck and wait for Gary to call back. It would only be a few minutes, and Justin had told him to take his time after all. He stood and walked out onto the deck to sit on bottom step, setting the phone down next to him and then leaning against the railing with his feet in the sand as he looked out at the waves.

Within only a minute or two his thoughts, as they had often seemed to do the last few days, wandered right back to Tony and how it had been between them. JC normally tried not to think about it too much because he invariably got unhappy, but telling the others made it fresh in his mind again, and he hoped maybe he could mull it over in private this time so he wouldn’t be as likely to tell the others things they shouldn’t have to hear. He already felt bad about telling them what he had because he didn’t think his problems should be allowed to affect them. He was unhappy enough for all of them for a long time, and now that he was finally getting over it he didn’t want the others to dwell on it. Sure, Justin needed to know – JC had promised he wouldn’t hide anything from Justin anymore, no matter what – but the other guys would be a lot happier just not knowing, especially Mike and Charlie.

JC looked down at his feet then, frowning as he let his wandering mind follow that tangent. He hadn’t wanted the two teens to hear so much, but he had forgotten they were there again and then once he got started talking he had said more than he meant to. He had held so many things in for so long and now that he could tell the guys he had an unreasoning urge to do just that and tell them _everything_ , but Mike and Charlie were with them so much that they were learning more than JC was really comfortable with. JC felt like a complete ass for making Charlie so upset he felt the need to hide in Mike’s arms, especially since he knew Charlie hated for them to see him with Mike, and he wished he could take back the last half hour and start over. Those two boys trusted the group to take care of them like they had promised them they would, and here JC was telling them about a sadistic bastard who’d abused him. A three year history of abuse was the last thing two young people in love needed to hear or worry about.

JC sighed. He couldn’t take back even the last half a minute, he knew; if there was one thing he’d finally accepted about life it was that the past just that, the past. It could be learned from or even forgotten if you were lucky but never changed, so it was pointless to wish he could. Justin hadn’t learned that yet and JC knew it, and he hoped that Justin could learn it from his mistakes instead of getting hurt himself. Justin kept thinking of things that would be different ‘if only’ he’d said something to JC in the beginning and beating himself up over the fact he hadn’t listened to Brit when she told him to just tell JC how he felt, and JC hated the fact that everything troubling Justin right now was his fault. Justin’s love was a precious gift – JC treasured it the same way Justin cherished JC’s body every time he made love to him – and hurting him even accidentally was almost more than JC could bear. Knowing that he had caused Justin even one moment of unhappiness hurt him, much less the pain he’d seen in Justin’s eyes several times.

JC suddenly lifted his gaze to look out at the waves then, consciously trying to think of something else as he absently wiped at his eyes with the back of his hand. JC was still completely amazed by how Justin – and the other three too, to a lesser extent – treated him because it was so very different from anything he’d ever known before. No one had ever touched JC with the obvious love and reverence Justin did, much less asked for so little and given so much in return. Even the groupies JC had let talk him into things in the early days had wanted something from him, but Justin didn’t. They could just hold each other and talk or play and wrestle like overgrown children – which they did a lot – or make slow, sweet love and Justin would be just as happy.

Justin and Tony – the comparison was inevitable since they were the only two people JC had ever had sex with more than once – were as different in their approaches to JC as it was possible to be, both physically and emotionally. Tony had never let JC take the lead sexually, not even when they’d first started out, and he had always made what he wanted to do plain and then had done it. Justin wanted JC to take the lead, not because Justin was shy about showing JC how he felt, but because Justin didn’t really care what they did as long as they did it together.

JC had started to give in on most things because he was scared of Tony after he hurt JC that first time, something JC hadn’t admitted even to himself until recently, but that Justin had immediately picked up on and pointed out to him. Tony had become progressively more demanding after that until it got to the point he wanted and expected to completely dominate JC, and all their time together for the last two years had been about making Tony happy. Tony had also stopped telling JC he loved him years ago, instead asking JC if he still loved Justin and then when he got the inevitable answer he would tell JC how stupid he was to still love him after years of waiting.

Tony had hurt JC under the guise of having sex with him many times – more often than JC had admitted to – and he had hated to ‘play the girl’ because he didn’t want to give even the man he supposedly was in love with that much power over him. Sex with Tony almost always had involved bruises for JC, and over and over again Tony had hurt JC and then pretended that he didn’t even know he’d done it or that it was JC’s fault for ‘making’ him. JC couldn’t count the number of times Tony had done something he didn’t like and Tony’s excuse had been that he just couldn’t control himself because JC was too sexy, therefore making it all JC’s own fault.

JC and Justin's first night together, _before_ JC had told him everything and Justin started to worry about bringing back bad memories, Justin had still treated him like a precious treasure. He had given JC the sweet, loving smile Justin reserved just for him and then bared his heart and soul in every glance or touch. Justin wanted nothing more than to make sure JC knew he loved him and would do anything for him, and he took every opportunity he could find to tell JC how much he loved him, that he’d loved JC from the first time he saw him, and that he loved JC more every time he saw him smile. Even now Justin was completely unashamed to let JC control what they did and even let JC make love to him whether they were alone or not.

Tony and Justin were complete opposites, really. One of them exactly what JC needed in his life, and the other everything he should have avoided like the plague, and it had only taken JC six years to figure that out.

JC had enjoyed being with Tony the first year they had been together, but the rest of the time really overshadowed the good times now that JC knew how it could have – _should_ have – been all along.

It should have been Justin. It was that simple.

It had taken him a long time and he’d had to go through hell first, but he was finally sure he would be spending the rest of his life just exactly as he should have all along. With Justin.

JC looked out at the ocean, smiling again finally as he began to sing softly to himself, thinking that Chris would probably have a conniption if he heard him sing this particular song. " _’_ _Well this feeling that you_ _’_ _re feeling, is something I know you_ _’_ _ve felt before. When I see you I want to hold you, till the end of time and a little bit more. And I_ _’_ _m not gonna let it go, you_ _’_ _ve got to let your feelings show, so smile, give me all your heart and we_ _’_ _ll never be apart, I_ _’_ _ll never leave you lonely if you_ _’_ _ll just smile. Tell me that you care and I_ _’_ _ll always be there, I_ _’_ _ll never leave you hurting if you just smile. Well this feeling I_ _’_ _ve been feeling, well I can feel it right now from my head to the floor. When I see you I want to love you till the end of time and a little bit more, and I_ _’_ _m not gonna let it go, you_ _’_ _ve got to let your feelings show... So smile, give me all your hear_ —‘"

JC’s phone rang then, making him break off mid-word as picked it up and flicked it open, then said, "Hello?"

"Hey! Sorry it took me so long," Gary said, sounding cheerful. "Callie insisted on a walk after I got dressed and I didn’t want to leave Bandit out so the three of us went for a quick jog around the neighborhood."

JC laughed. "No problem, Gary. I’m out on the deck watching the waves and that’s always better than doing fan mail."

Gary chuckled softly. "You’re bad, skipping out and leaving them with all the work."

JC grinned. "Yeah, I know, but I was told to take my time. Justin’s perfectly willing to do my share, he knows I can’t stand it. How were the dogs while you were out?"

"Pretty good, though I wish Callie had half Bandit’s brains. I had them off leash since Callie will stay out of trouble and Bandit’s got the manners of an angel, and we didn’t see a soul until we headed home. Tony was out in his driveway loading boxes into a moving van, and he stopped when he saw us and said hi  – he acted like he was afraid Jake would catch him talking to me and kick his ass again, I had to work at it not to laugh at him – and Callie ran over to him to let him pet her. I said hi to him and thanked him for letting us take Bandit, and he said he hoped you’d be able to take him on tour with you when you were here next weekend. I didn’t know you were going to be here next week so I didn’t say anything, and I guess Tony thought I just didn’t want to talk about you or something because he bent down and called Bandit, who – bless his little doggy heart – immediately sat down by my feet."

JC chuckled and listened as Gary went on, "Well, Tony wanted to try and make me think he missed the dog I guess because he came over to talk to Bandit, and when he got a few feet away Bandit stood up and gave him an obvious ‘back off’ look. Tony crouched and reached to pet him anyway and Bandit showed him his teeth, then Tony just stood up and mumbled ‘damn dog’ and walked off. He acted like we ceased to exist after that."

JC laughed. "You’re kidding!"

Gary laughed. "Oh no hon, I’m not! When we got back home Bandit got a biscuit – in his bowl, he won’t eat out of anything else for some reason – and he’s on the couch with his head in my lap right now getting his ears scratched. This is the smartest dog I ever saw, I swear, and the best behaved too. You did a really good job on him."

JC smiled. "He won’t eat out of anything but his bowl or my hands because he was taught not to so fans couldn’t feed him stuff that’s bad for him. And I didn’t do much, I was hardly ever around."

Gary snorted. "You’ve spent more time with him than Tony did, and I’d bet on it. I think sometimes this poor dog spent a month at a time out in Tony’s back yard, and I _know_ that Bandit doesn’t like him."

JC nodded, and then remembered he was on the phone again. "Yeah, I know. I figured as much when I visited the last time and Bandit didn’t want anything to do with Tony, and then Tony insisted Bandit stay outside most of the time and not go in his living room or bedroom at all. I asked him why and he said he didn’t want the dog leaving hair all over his furniture and bothering us, but I didn’t think Bandit being with me was a bother and I said as much. Tony got pissed and I wound up not getting to see Bandit a whole lot."

Gary sighed.  "Well hon, look on the bright side: it took a long time but now you’re finally away from him and so is Bandit."

JC smiled. "Yep, and happier than I’ve ever been." 

Gary grinned and teased, "Is someone finally getting laid right?"

JC smirked suddenly. "And left!"

Gary laughed. "So Justin’s teaching you a thing or three?"

"Well, we’re learning together. I’ve found out that for over six years I’ve been getting fucked when I could have been making love, and he’s learning all sorts of things he didn’t know," JC answered, smiling.

Gary sounded surprised as he asked, "Like what?"

"Well everything, really, except for kissing. He was already a pro at that," JC answered, chuckling.

"He was a virgin?!" Gary asked incredulously.

"Yeah," JC answered softly, happy and a little awed. "He says he’s always known I was the one he was going to spend his life with, so he was waiting for me. Until me he’d never really even kissed anyone but Brit, and they only fooled around because they didn’t want to be completely inexperienced when they finally hooked up with the people they loved."

"Wow, isn’t he like, twenty?" Gary asked, almost at a loss for words because could hardly imagine a guy, _any_ guy, waiting until he was twenty to have sex. He’d lost his own virginity not long after he turned sixteen, and Gary had held out longer than most people he grew up with.

JC chuckled. "Yeah, almost twenty. Chris is still amazed that Justin could’ve had anyone he wanted and knew I had been with other people and he still waited for me. When Chris asked him about it in the truck the other night, Justin just laughed and asked why he should settle for the rest when he could have the best if he was patient long enough. That was so completely sweet I just had to kiss him and then one thing led to another and we eventually wound up having sex while we were going seventy down an interstate."

Gary laughed but he still sounded shocked as he said, "You?! You’re kidding!"

JC shook his head, chuckling softly. "No hon, I’m not. I was blushing as red as a lobster a few times, especially when Chris made a comment or two, but neither of us wanted to wait another three hours until we got to the hotel. Lance and Chris were in the front seat fooling around anyway, so it’s not like they just sat and watched us, and Joe had his eyes on the road, mostly. By the time we got to the Myrtle Beach city limits Justin and I were in the back seat making out and much more relaxed, and Chris was curled up in Lance’s lap watching us over Lance’s shoulder."

"I can hardly believe it," Gary said again, sounding amused and surprised. "You’re usually such— Well, such a _prude_!"

JC laughed. "Believe it, hon. Justin can touch me or kiss me and I forget everything but how much I love him and want him. The fact there are other people around just sort of stops being important."

"You make it sound like it’s happened more than once..." Gary trailed off, more thrilled than surprised. JC sounded completely happy for the first time since Gary had known him, which was a great thing as far as Gary was concerned. Something JC had mentioned clicked suddenly and Gary asked, "Lance and Chris are together?"

"Yeah," JC admitted, "and Joe too. The three of them are in love, but not many are going to know about it. We all love each other really, and we’re a lot closer than friends. Like, last night we decided to try out the hot tub, and I wound up kissing Lance and Chris and then Justin kissed Chris too and by the time Lance and Chris joined Joey in the water Justin and I both were past the point of being ashamed of doing anything in front of them..." JC trailed off a second and then was blushing furiously as he went on, "I— I made love to Justin and then we got in the hot tub too and talked to the guys a while, then later Justin held me while we watched Joey and Chris make love to Lance, which was amazing. I mean, I knew they love each other more than anything, but to see them together like that was just... There are no words."

"Wow," Gary said softly, surprised. "So all five of you are, um, together?"

"Well, kind of," JC replied. "It’s complicated, really, but it all boils down to the fact we all love each other and want more than friendship. We’re not going to be having orgies or anything like that," JC hastily added, "but we do kiss each other or hug or whatever, and there’s not a whole lot we won’t do in front of each other anymore. We’ve always been close, we’re just closer now, that’s all."

Gary was silent a long moment, then asked, "Do the others treat you right, Josh?"

JC chuckled. "Yes Gary, they do. None of them want anything I’m not willing to give. I think Justin’s been talking to them about how it was with Tony because they’re all four still waiting for me to make the first move. Joey, Chris, and Lance are all half afraid to touch me because they seem to think I’m made of spun glass or something, but I think they’ll get over it eventually."

"That’s good," Gary said quietly, his tone making it obvious he was smiling. "It sounds like they all really love you, sweetie."

"They do, I know it as well as I know my own name," JC answered just as quietly, smiling as he looked down at where his feet rested in the sand. "They show it in a hundred ways every day, from something as simple as how they smile at me when I walk into a room to the fact Chris, Joe, and Lance changed our plans for the rest of the week just to give me more time here on the beach."

"I’m so happy for you," Gary said. "All these years of waiting and you’ve finally gotten what you needed."

JC chuckled softly. "All these years of waiting, and _we_ _’_ _ve_ finally seen what we had all along: each other. Lance and Joe are the most perceptive of us so I guess it shouldn’t surprise me they were together almost a year before the rest of us caught the clue bus."

Gary laughed. "And a person would think you could catch a bus, as much time as you spend on them."

JC grinned. "Half my life it seems like, and with them even, and we _still_ never had a clue they were in love, much less together. The guys say I’ve been pretty far out in la-la land the last few years, but that was the only way I could keep Justin from seeing how much I love him, so I have an excuse. Justin’s just that dense about some things."

"You’re so mean!" Gary said, laughing.

"He is Gary, I swear!" JC replied, laughing too. "When I told him I was in love with someone, a man I had known since before the group started, he asked me _who_. I was afraid to just come right out and say it so I said it was someone I’d spent almost every waking minute with, and that every time I saw him I loved him a little more. Justin sat there and thought for three or four minutes, then asked me if it was the _bus driver_."

"Tell me you’re joking," Gary said, trying not to laugh again.

"Nope," JC replied, grinning. "His next guess was our security chief, Lonnie, and I just barely kept from laughing at him. Chris told him that it was someone I was with all the time on tour, even more than we’re with security or on the bus, and Justin still just looked lost so Chris added that it wasn’t him, Joe, or Lance, and then waited to see if Justin would finally figure it out. Jup was still completely lost and chewing on his lip, thinking hard and looking so absolutely adorable that I wanted to kiss him, and Chris finally lost patience after a few minutes and flat out told Justin I was in love with him."

Gary chuckled, shaking his head. "And did you know by then that he was in love with you, or did someone have to tell you?"

"Well, someone told me," JC admitted, looking wry. "Justin ran out of the room after Chris told him I loved him and I was pretty upset, but he came back a few minutes later with his cell and asked me to talk to Brit. I didn’t really want to – I thought they were as good as _engaged_ – but she immediately told me she was happy for me which confused me, and then she said Justin’s been in love with me almost from the day we met. After that I was too busy kissing Justin to care what else she had to say."

Gary grinned. "You’re perfect for each other. You must be the two _densest_ men alive."

JC laughed, surprised. "Oh, man, that was harsh!"

"But true!" Gary replied, then chuckled and asked, "You know sweets, you never did tell me why you called. I love the chance to talk, but there’s no reason for you to waste your time off, we can talk while you’re on the bus next week."

JC smiled. "True. I wanted to ask you if you would mail me the blue bag I left with you last time I was there. We’re supposed to go to this club and I want to be able to dance with my baby."

"Sure, sweetie, no problem! I can FedEx it today and it ought to get there by tomorrow afternoon. Do the guys know you’re going to go in drag?" Gary asked, grinning.

"Yep! Justin can’t wait to see how I fool so many people, and Joe and Chris are just kinky enough they think it’s a great idea." JC chuckled. "Lance isn’t sure about the whole concept yet. He’s a country boy from Mississippi and a guy dressing up like a woman just does not make sense to him."

Gary laughed, remembering the days when he was a country boy from Ohio. "I wish I could be there to see his face when he sees you all dolled up the first time. You’re gonna make a believer out of him if anyone can."

"That’s the plan, yeah," JC said, grinning again.

"I’d better let you go, sweetie. If I’m going to mail that by three, I need to get a move on," Gary said then, sounding amused. "Let me find something to write the address on." JC’s eyes widened and he was about to say something when Gary added, "I’ll be right back."

JC stood and started towards the door into his room. "And while you find some paper, I’ll go find out where I am."

Gary laughed. "You do that, it might help."

JC grinned and walked quickly inside as he heard Gary put the phone down. He walked down the hallway and through the kitchen into the living room, not surprised to see the guys were only about halfway done with mail. They had been putting it off for over a week, so JC had no doubt they’d be busy for at least a few more hours on it.

"Lance?" JC asked then, making the others look up in surprise as Lance, whose back was to the doorway, twisted around to see him.

"Yeah, Josh, what do you need?" the blond asked, giving him a quick smile.

JC looked a bit sheepish as he asked, "Do you have the address here?"

Chris and Mike both laughed at that while Joey and Justin grinned at JC and Lance put down the letter he’d been reading to stand up. "I’ve got it on my Palm," Lance said with a little grin, "it won’t take but a minute to get it."

JC smiled and said, "I’ll go with you," just as he heard Gary pick the phone up again.

"Find it yet?" Gary asked, obviously amused.

JC followed Lance back into the kitchen and down the hall to Lance’s room as he said to Gary, "Not yet, but Lance knows right were it is. We don’t call him Scoop for nothing."

Lance grinned over his shoulder at JC and walked into his room, ignoring the clothes scattered everywhere as he walked over to where his backpack was laying on the dresser. JC followed him in and walked over to sit on the end of the bed, watching Lance with a little smile as he dug into his backpack. JC thought that Chris and Joey must have been keeping an eye on him when he got dressed that morning, either that or Lance needed to do laundry. Lance was wearing a pair of almost-tight jeans instead of his usual baggy khakis and his t-shirt was a bit too short as well, showing off his ass to JC’s appreciative gaze.

"Where’d he have to go to get it?" Gary asked after a moment, and JC’s eyes stopped roaming over Lance’s body with a start.

"He’s got the address in his Palm, he just has to get it," JC said, mentally slapping himself for staring at Lance like that while Lance chuckled, shaking his head as he flipped his Palm Pilot open to get the address. JC wasn’t as far out as he’d been, but he still made very little sense sometimes; maybe it was a habit.

Sure enough, Gary sounded confused as he asked, "If he’s holding it in his hand, why does he have to go get it?"

JC patiently said, "He wasn’t holding it, but he is now. He still has to find the address, though."

Gary was silent again then, totally lost as he tried to think his way through what JC had said. Gary was sure it made sense to JC, but he also knew that didn’t always help since JC’s mind worked in completely unique ways.

Lance laughed and walked over to sit down by JC. "Sweetheart," Lance said, grinning, "you _do_ know you’re not making much sense, right?"

"Yeah, what he said!" Gary said, laughing suddenly, glad he wasn’t the only one who thought that.

JC gave Lance an indignant look. “I made perfect sense! The address is in your Palm, but you have to find it!"

Lance chuckled, shaking his head again as Gary asked, "Can I talk to Lance please, sweetie?"

JC snorted. "Sure, here he is," he said, then offered the phone to Lance.

Lance grinned and took it, then put it to his ear as he said, "Hello?"

"Hi, you must be Lance. This is Gary. What the hell is Josh talking about?" Gary asked, sounding more amused than anything else despite his words.

Lance chuckled. "Hi Gary. I have the address in my Palm Pilot, not in my hand. Well, the Palm Pilot is in my hand now, but you know what I mean."

JC rolled his eyes. "I just said the exact same thing."

Gary laughed. "That makes a lot more sense but I’m beginning to think it doesn’t matter, just as long as I get the address."

Lance grinned. "You ready for it?"

"Yep! Lay it on me," Gary replied immediately, then listened as Lance read the address to him before he repeated it back, finishing, "Is that right?"

"Sure is!" Lance answered with a smile.

"Thanks, Lance. Sometimes Josh needs a translator, but he’s the sweetest man alive so you have to forgive him for it," Gary said, sounding amused, then asked, "Can I talk to him again? I have to get a move on if I’m going to get this mailed..."

"Sure, here he is," Lance said with a chuckle. "Have a good evening!"

"You too," Gary replied, and then listened as Lance handed JC the phone.

"I said the same thing he did," JC said immediately, sounding a little put upon as he watched Lance stand and go put the Palm back in his backpack.

Gary chuckled. "Yeah you did, sweetie, but you left out one little word: ‘Pilot’. I was trying to figure out why he was looking for something he was holding in the palm of his hand."

JC’s eyebrows went up, and then he looked a little sheepish. "Well, okay, so maybe that _was_ a little confusing."

Lance chuckled as he zipped up his backpack, then turned to lean back against the dresser and watch JC as Gary said, "I’d better get going. You have fun this evening, okay?"

JC grinned, looking down at his feet as he replied, "I will, hon. You do the same."

"No doubt!" Gary replied cheerfully. "Bye!"

"Bye," JC said, then hung up and looked up at Lance, smiling a bit.

Lance’s eyebrows went up slightly when JC didn’t say anything after a minute and he asked, "What are you thinking?"

JC grinned and stood, stuffing the cell phone in his back pocket. "Nothing much."

JC crossed the room to stand right in front of Lance and rest his hands on Lance’s hips, prompting Lance to put his hands on JC’s waist as he smiled slightly and asked, "Are you sure about that, Josh?"

JC nodded, smiling as leaned to give Lance a quick kiss on the end of his nose, then he said, "I was just thinking that you take good care of us. Of me."

Lance smiled and lifted one hand to stroke JC’s cheek lightly. "Of course I take care of you, Josh. I love you."

"I love you, too," JC said softly, smiling. "I have for a long time now."

"Really?" Lance asked quietly, looking searchingly into JC’s eyes and not even thinking about it as he moved his hand from JC’s cheek to slowly stroke the back of his neck.

JC nodded, surprised Lance had to ask. "Yeah, really. I love you more than I ever thought I would be able to admit."

Lance was silent for a long moment, absently toying the soft curls at the nape of JC’s neck, and then he asked, "What about Joe and Chris?"

JC smiled and slid his hands around Lance’s waist to pull him closer. "I love them, too. The three of you are all more important to me than anyone in the world, except Justin."

Lance thought about that another moment and then smiled. "I feel the same way about you and Justin. I have for a long time, I just never said anything because I didn’t think you – either of you – could feel the same."

JC gave Lance’s waist a squeeze and smiled a bit wider. "Well, we do. I know that kissing and holding you is something we’ve both wanted for a long time, almost as much as we want each other." JC bent his head to kiss Lance softly then, not lingering at all or even giving Lance a chance to deepen it before he pulled back, his smiling blue eyes focused on Lance’s green ones.

Lance returned the smile and moved his hand from JC’s neck to brush back the hair hanging across the taller man’s forehead. "We should get back, we were waiting on you so we could go play on the beach."

JC gave Lance another quick kiss and then pulled away, gesturing towards the door with a grin. "Lead on, Scoop. You know I’m always ready to go play, especially on a beach!"

Lance chuckled and headed for the door. "I know, sweetheart, that’s why we’re here."

JC just grinned and fell in behind Lance, following him out of the room and down the hall.

 

 


	59. Chapter 59

 

~~~~ 59 ~~~~

 

Lance and JC could hear laughter well before they got to the door to the living room, and they exchanged a grin as Justin’s laughing voice said, "Oh, you did _not_ just say that!"

There was a loud thud then, followed by sounds of a struggle and Chris’ amused voice saying, "Aww, c’mon kid, you know you are!"

Lance reached the doorway then and stopped there in relative safety while JC moved to stand behind him and look over his shoulder. Both of them grinned, watching as Justin and Chris rolled across piles of mail, wrestling until Justin got the upper hand and settled astride Chris’ stomach. Justin caught Chris’ hands a moment later and pinned them to the floor on either side of Chris’ head as the smaller man twisted and bucked under him, trying to throw him off while Justin just smirked and held on. Justin used to always lose when they wrestled, but over the last year or so he’d finally gotten the upper hand – so to speak – and now he won at least as often as he lost.

Chris finally subsided with a little growly noise almost a minute later, making Justin grin down at him as he asked, "You gonna take it back?"

"Nope," Chris said, pouting, "and you can’t make me!"

Justin smirked. "You gonna make me try?"

"I ain’t taking it back, kid, you _are_ whipped," Chris replied firmly.

JC stifled a laugh and moved a little closer to Lance so he could see better, absently resting his hands on Lance’s hips. Lance looked over his shoulder then to grin quickly at JC, who returned the grin before both looked back at Justin and Chris.

Justin snorted, sitting up a little straighter as he loosened his hold on Chris’ wrists. "I am not, I’m in love. There’s a big difference, old man."

"Name one reason it’s so different," Chris said confidently, quite sure Justin couldn’t.

Justin thought a moment, and then suddenly grinned. "I know there is, so when I think of one I’ll tell you, okay?"

Chris laughed. "You’re somethin’ else, kid."

Justin smirked again. "I know."

Chris snorted and suddenly tried to buck Justin off again, making Justin laugh and tighten his hold on Chris’ hands as he tried to pin Chris’ down again before the older man realized all he had to do was brace himself with his feet and Justin wouldn’t have a prayer. Chris twisted again then and managed to get one hand loose, immediately reaching to tickle Justin, who laughed and grabbed for his hand, trying to squirm away and accidentally loosening his hold on Chris’ other hand as he said, "Dammit, Critter, that’s cheating!"

Chris smirked and twisted again, jerking his other hand loose too before he started tickling Justin in earnest, making Justin start giggling as Chris said, "Ain’t no such thing, Infant!"

Chris tickled Justin for a moment longer and then finally braced his feet and bucked again, neatly flipping them over so Justin was on his back. JC chuckled and watched as Chris scrambled to sit astride Justin’s hips and start tickling him again, thinking Justin had lost the moment Chris got his hands free. Chris smirked wickedly down at the younger man as Justin giggled and squirmed, pushing feebly at Chris’ chest to try and make him quit, but Chris didn’t let up a bit until he had Justin laughing so hard he was gasping for breath and had tears in his eyes.

"You had enough, kid?" Chris asked with a grin, shifting slightly to take his weight off his bad knee but trying not to be obvious about it.

Justin nodded, still giggling a bit, and Chris smirked as he made a show of flexing his fingers above Justin’s ribs and asked, "And are you gonna stop calling me an old man?"

"Not until you stop calling me an infant!" Justin said trying to look serious.

Chris snorted. "As long as you’re afraid to watch ‘ _Halloween 3_ ’ with me you’re still gonna be the Infant." Justin stuck his tongue out at Chris at that, and Chris smirked. "That an invitation, kid?"

Justin pretended to think about it a moment and then pouted. "No. No kisses for you until you until you admit I’m an adult."

Chris snorted and was about to say something when JC said, "He is, y’know. Though, where you’re sitting I’m sure you can tell."

Joey, Mike, and Lance laughed at that as Chris looked up quickly, surprised to see JC and Lance standing so close while JC grinned at him, then he looked back down at Justin to see him blushing just a bit.

Chris grinned and shifted experimentally to see if what JC said was true, then smirked. "I think somebody _likes_ to be tickled."

Justin’s face flushed a little more. "No comment."

JC grinned wickedly. "I could tell you where he likes to be tickled most, but you’d just want to find out for yourself and that ain’t happening, Critter."

Chris watched with a wicked little grin as Justin’s face flame even redder than before. "I bet I can guess."

"Go right ahead, but go sit on someone else while you do it," Justin said quickly, giving Chris’ chest a light shove.

Chris chuckled and got off of Justin to sit leaning against the couch, then watched as Justin stood and moved over to the recliner while Lance walked over to sit on the couch next to Chris.

Justin flopped down and then flinched and shifted, muttering under his breath and giving Chris a dirty look while Chris smirked at him. "You’re a pain in the a—" Justin started, then broke off and laughed. "Well, okay, not quite a pain in the _ass_ , but that’s close enough."

Chris laughed and gave him a seated bow. "Why thank you!"

Justin snorted and shifted again to get more comfortable and then looked over at where JC still stood, starting at the floor and letting his gaze travel slowly up JC’s bare legs to the cutoff shorts that were only just barely visible at the hem of the purple t-shirt. Justin’s gaze continued to roam upward as little grin appeared on his face, and when he met JC’s eyes he made a little ‘mmm’ noise and then said, "You look good enough to eat."

JC laughed and walked across the room towards Justin. "You should know baby, you have."

Charlie blushed bright red as Mike, Chris, and Joey laughed while Lance chuckled, watching as Justin’s grin turned into a smirk.

"I know," Justin replied, "it’s one of my favorite ways to pass the time."

JC grinned and stopped in front of Justin. "Really?"

"Oh yeah," Justin said feelingly, "I can’t think of many things I’d rather do, especially now that I finally figured out how to do it right."

JC’s grin turned into a smirk. "But there _are_ other things you’d rather do?" Justin grinned wickedly but didn’t reply so JC moved forward until his knees were against the recliner between Justin’s. "Like what?" JC asked, still smirking.

Justin suddenly leaned forward to wrap one arm around JC’s waist as he scooped his legs out from under him with the other, making JC laugh as he sprawled inelegantly across Justin’s lap and Justin said, "Whatever you want, babe."

JC shifted to get more comfortable in Justin’s lap, causing Justin to make a low noise as he tightened his hold on JC to make him be still. "I can think of lots of things I’d like to do," JC said then, giving Justin a wicked grin, "And most of them involve you."

Justin grinned, a wicked twinkle lighting his dark blue eyes. "Sounds good to me. Pick something so we can get busy."

Chris chuckled at that and JC gave him a quick grin, then looked back at Justin and leaned in close. "Okay." JC kissed him then and Justin responded warmly, sliding one hand up under JC’s t-shirt as the other pulled him close, but after a moment JC broke the kiss to grin at Justin and say brightly, "Let’s go swimming."

Chris laughed and shook his head while Joey and Lance both grinned and wondered what Justin would say.

Justin just blinked twice, then laughed and said, "Okay babe, swimming it is. Let me up so I can go find my trunks."

JC gave Justin a quick kiss, then smiled at him. "You’re so good to me, baby."

"I know," Justin said, returning the smile.

JC sat in Justin’s lap a moment longer then grinned and said, "You’ll have to help me up, somebody knocked me down."

Justin grinned and slid his hand up the outside of JC’s bare thigh, his fingers disappearing under the ragged hem of the cutoff shorts. "I wonder who would do something like that? I might have to kick his ass, nobody is allowed to knock my baby down."

JC laughed and pushed lightly at Justin’s chest. "Up! Now."

Justin helped JC to his feet and then stood too, slipping his arms around JC from behind and leaning close to put his lips next to JC’s ear as he said softly, "Love you."

JC turned his head to give Justin a sweet smile as he answered just as quietly, "I love you too, baby."

Justin gave JC a happy grin and kissed his cheek, then let go of him and started towards the kitchen. “I’ll be back in a minute."

JC sat down where Justin had just been, watching Justin leave the room before he pulled his feet up into the chair so that his knees were against his chest as he looked at the empty doorway, his smile fading. He finally looked over at Chris and Lance after a minute or so and said quietly, "He did it again. He wanted me, and I when I suggested something else he accepted it without even a pout. How do I convince him that he doesn’t have to do what I want all the time?"

Lance smiled and was about to say something when Joey asked, "If you knew what he wanted and you were willing, why did you suggest something else?"

Lance looked at Joey in surprise, and JC answered, "I wanted to see if he’d act different after last night."

Chris looked thoughtful. "Have you tried just telling him?"

JC nodded, then propped his chin on his knees as he said quietly, "Day before yesterday and then again last night after we went to bed. Both times he said he knew that he doesn’t have to do everything I want to do, but he keeps right on doing just that. It’s almost like he’s afraid to ask me to do anything, but I know he’s not, he’s been asking me to do stuff since I met him. Has he said anything to you about it?"

"He likes to see you happy, Josh," Lance said then, carefully skirting the question before Chris felt like he had to answer it. "Making you happy makes him happy too."

JC smiled wryly and said patiently, "I know that, but it’s still not fair for it to be all about what I want."

Chris laughed. "Josh, it’s not. The kid is _not_ touching or kissing you just because you want him to. He wants you any way he can get you, so don’t doubt that he’s enjoying it, even doing what you want to do."

"But he has to have some idea of what he’d like to do by now, we’ve done a lot in the last few days," JC said quietly, his cheeks just barely blushing. "I love knowing that he wants me happy more than anything else, but I want _him_ to be happy, too."

"Josh, he is," Chris said earnestly. "Every time he gets to touch you it makes his minute, even if all he does is hold your hand."

Lance nodded, adding, "Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. He loves being with you and making you happy, and that makes him happier than I’ve ever seen him before. Just be happy together and everything will be okay, I promise."

JC still didn’t look convinced, and after thinking a second he looked Lance in the eye and asked, "Has he talked to you about it?"

Justin hadn’t taken more than a few moments to strip and pull on his trunks, and after grabbing the towels they had dried off with the night before he quickly headed back to the living room. Justin was almost all the way through the kitchen when he heard JC ask Lance if he’d talked to Justin about something and he paused at JC’s serious tone, leaning against the counter. He didn’t want to eavesdrop, but he didn’t want to interrupt the conversation the others were having before JC had a chance to ease his mind about whatever was worrying him either. Justin hadn’t heard what they were talking about yet, but he absolute confidence that between the three of them Joey, Lance, and Chris could reassure JC that everything was okay.

Lance smiled at JC as he answered, "Yeah sweetheart, a little."

JC looked down at the letters scattered on the floor a moment, then looked back up at Lance. "I just want to be sure what he really wants." JC suddenly smiled and went on, "I love it though, watching him. He’s so beautiful."

Lance smiled a little wider. "The two of you together is definitely a sight to see."

JC blushed again, still smiling, but after a moment his smile faded. "Still though, I can’t help but wonder if it really is what he wants, instead of what he thinks I want. I’m not used to being in charge in bed – Tony never let me – and I know Justin hasn’t got a submissive bone in his body, but he still expects me to take the lead." JC paused a second, then added more quietly, "I’m not a very good dom."

Chris smiled. "Josh, sometimes things are cut and dried like that with someone who is a definite dom and someone who’s a sub, but a lot of the time it’s not. Joey and I have been known to wrestle to see who gets to be on top, but neither of us really cares who wins, and we don’t mind a bit when Lance decides we’ve played around long enough and makes up our minds for both of us."

"Yeah, I understand that, it’s just that—" JC paused a second, trying to think of how to say what he wanted to, then went on, "I mean, I know I’m easy to push around, I always have been, but Justin won’t anymore. He used to all the time, as easy as breathing, and I always knew what he wanted. I don’t even think he knew he did it, he’d just grin and bull through whatever argument I had and we’d do what he wanted to do. Now that he knows about Tony he won’t do that, and I don’t believe for a minute it’s because he doesn’t want to anymore. Justin’s always liked getting his way."

Justin thoughtfully chewed on his lower lip, looking down at his bare feet. JC was right, he had been making a conscious effort not to push JC for anything since he found out Tony had always insisted on doing everything his way. Justin hadn’t thought JC would notice though, and now that JC had he didn’t know what to do. He had a strong feeling that talking to the guys wasn’t really going to make JC feel better even though he—

Justin broke off mid-thought as he had an idea and suddenly grinned as he turned to walk silently back through the kitchen and down the hallway to the door to the room he shared with JC.

Chris and Lance really didn’t know how to answer JC, since what JC was saying was the simple truth but they hadn’t really expected JC to notice it. He’d been off in la-la land for so long that they were all still getting used to having the old JC back, the one who didn’t miss much and had earned the nickname ‘big daddy’. JC had taken care of Justin and Lance with single-minded dedication for the first two years the group was together, making sure they kept up their schooling and abided by curfew and a million other things, and he’d seldom missed it if either of them was troubled. Lance had earned the nickname ‘Scoop’ when he stepped into the void left by JC not taking care of everyone anymore, and it was going to take them all some time to get used to JC being aware of more than music and dancing again.

Joey surprised the others then by speaking up. "Josh, the things he knows now have changed how he treats you, I won’t try to deny that, but there are a some things that won’t ever change. He loves you with all his heart and soul, and loves making you happy, and loves being with you. Now that he has you, he doesn’t need to ask for more. You’re the only thing he’s really wanted since before he knew what wanting you meant."

JC looked thoughtful for a moment, and then slowly smiled. "You’re sure?"

Joey smiled and nodded as Lance replied immediately, "Yeah Josh," glad Joey seemed to have set JC’s worries to rest. Joey didn’t speak up often but when he did he usually said something worth listening to, and he could often reassure one of the others when nobody else could figure out what to say.

Justin opened the door to their room and then closed it loudly before beginning to sing as he danced down the hallway and into the kitchen, grooving to music only he could hear. " _’_ _Up until the other day, there remained an empty space within my bed... Then I took one look at you and naughty things that we could do danced within my head. Never have I ever made love before, never have I wanted to_ _‘_ _til now. Lover, can_ _’_ _t you see I want you more and more?_ _’_ " Justin opened the fridge noisily and went on, " _’_ _Take me baby, yeah, I_ _’_ _m yours!_ ’" as he took out a can of Mountain Dew, then continued, " _’_ _Ah, love me any way you want, but please love me now._ ’" He closed the refrigerator door and danced towards the living room. " _’_ _I_ _’_ _ll do anything you want, you_ _’_ _re the teacher, show me how_.’"

Justin finished singing just as he stopped to lean against the doorjamb, and he popped the tab on his drink before he glanced up and asked, "You guys ready to go yet?" Justin didn’t wait for an answer, instead taking a long drink and watching out of the corner of his eye as everyone just stared at him. He lowered the can after a moment and gave them a grin as he asked, "Why are y’all staring at me?"

"Dude," Chris said, finally grinning, "I didn’t know you listen to Prince!"

Justin’s grin turned decidedly wicked. "Oh, hell yeah. He may not know what he wants to call himself, but the guy wrote some seriously hot songs."

Charlie stared wide-eyed at Justin while Lance said, "I’ve never seen you with one of his CDs. "

Justin laughed. "That’s ‘cause I don’t _have_ his CDs Scoop – how the hell would I explain a Prince collection to anyone?! -- but  I do have a lot of his music on the discs I made for that MP3 player you got me for Christmas last year."

"How did you wind up listening to Prince?" Chris asked, still grinning. "He’s not really your style, kid."

Justin answered immediately, still grinning. "Wade has been listening to Prince since he was a kid and he got Brit hooked on his music, then she told me about it. She sent me some MP3s a few months ago and I was hooked."

"But his songs are so _dirty_!" Charlie said, still looking more than a little shocked.

Justin grinned at Charlie and crossed the room to the recliner where JC was sitting and put the can he was holding on the end table next to it before he easily scooped JC up in his arms and turned to sit down with JC in his lap again. "His songs are a little racy," Justin finally said then, grinning at Charlie, then he smirked at JC’s face from very up close and personal and added, "But they give me all sorts of good ideas."

JC grinned at Justin and snuggled in closer, leaning his forehead against Justin’s. "Ideas are good. You’ll have to tell me about them."

Justin tipped his chin up to rub his nose against JC’s, grinning. "If you really want me to."

"Definitely," JC replied firmly, returning the grin. "Or even demonstrate. He’s got some ... interesting songs."

Chris laughed. "You two are never gonna have the energy to do a concert again. You’ll wear each other out long before we make it to soundcheck!"

JC made a face at Chris as Justin smirked and said, "We’ll manage. I’ll even be good on days we have a show, I wanna get my hands on Josh when he’s on a concert high."

Lance’s eyes widened at that. He hadn’t really thought about it until now, but he suddenly recalled all of the nights Chris and Justin had stayed out with Joey and danced till four am after doing a show. They’d decided the night before that clubbing would be a group activity from now on, but they’d all admitted that they wouldn’t need dancing to work off the adrenalin-induced energy nearly as often now that they were all together. Lance knew that if JC and Justin were going at it all the time, Chris would be all over him and Joey, and they’d all decided not to bother getting another tour bus like they had planned to do while they were out west.

Lance would have to share a bus with the other four, and a hotel suite, and a dressing room, and the quiet room, and a house when they got home, and—

Lance sighed.

He wasn’t going to get a full night’s sleep _ever again_.

 

 


	60. Chapter 60

 

~~~~ 60 ~~~~

 

Chris finally spoke up again after a minute, distracting Lance from his train of thought. "I’m tellin’ you right now, kid, if you try to go down on him during a quick change, I’m gonna hurt you."

Lance couldn’t help but laugh at Justin’s immediate pout while Joey chuckled and JC gave Chris a dirty look, then JC turned back to Justin and saw his pout, his eyes going wide. "You wouldn’t, there’s twenty people backstage with us! Anthony and Lonnie’s guys and the sound crew and the _girls_ and—"

Justin’s pout didn’t budge as he interrupted to say, "But when we’re on stage you always get har—"

JC cut him off, not blushing but still not about to let Justin finish that. "That was before, baby. I’m sure it won’t be a problem now that we can share a shower before we get into our concert clothes."

Chris laughed. "Joshua! Are you suggesting public sex with the Infant?!"

JC turned to give Chris an innocent look. "Who, me?!"

Lance, Mike, and Joey all laughed at that as Chris smirked and said, "Yes you!"

"Well," JC said, grinning again, "it’s not like I’m suggesting sex in the bathroom at _a mall_ or anything. It’ll just be us and you guys at the venue, and I have no doubt at all what you’re gonna do when presented with the chance to drag Lance into a shower, much less Joe. Besides, sharing showers ought to save some time."

Lance laughed while Joey chuckled, nodding, and Chris snorted. "Not the way you two go at it! You’ll take at least twice as long for your shower if Justin’s in there too."

JC gave him a wicked grin. "Hey, what can I say? My baby’s damn good."

Justin blushed at that and Lance said wryly, "Well, at least we don’t have to worry about _Josh_ blushing to death now."

Joey grinned. "Yeah, it’s Justin’s turn."

Lance and Chris both started laughing at that as Justin stuck his tongue out at them. JC grinned as he leaned in to kiss Justin before he had a chance to close his mouth, sucking Justin’s tongue lewdly before they settled into a more conventional kiss.

Lance chuckled and shook his head, then looked over at Mike and said, "You do know you’ve started something, right?"

Mike looked surprised. "Me?! What’d _I_ do? I’m just sitting here behaving myself, boss."

Charlie snorted at that, making Lance laugh before he said, "I don’t mean right now, Mike. Charlie stuck his tongue out at you the other day and you said he’d better not show you his tongue unless you get to play with it too. Chris loves that idea and—"

"So do I," Justin broke in, smirking at them as JC began to trail kisses along his jaw, then Justin turned his head to nuzzle at JC’s neck before he nibbled lightly at the soft skin below his ear.

JC shivered, shifting in Justin’s lap to face him more and give Justin better access as Justin kissed and licked his way down JC’s neck to stop at the base of his throat and suck gently at a reddened spot there. JC made a soft noise and tried to turn even further towards Justin then, and after a moment Justin obligingly lifted him up so JC could turn to face him completely, straddling Justin’s lap. They kissed again then, Justin obviously in charge as one hand tangled in JC’s hair and held him close while the other slowly roamed down over JC’s ass to slip underneath the long t-shirt he wore. Justin slid his hand further up under JC’s shirt after a moment, lifting the hem with the back of his wrist but not quite enough for the other men in the room to see exactly what he did that made the brunette arch his back and moan softly, moving even closer to Justin.

Chris, Joey, Mike, and Lance watched them with almost identical grins while Charlie started reading again, studiously avoiding looking at the nearby recliner until he finished the letter in his hands and glanced up to see Mike watching JC and Justin instead of working. Charlie looked over at the couple then and blushed bright red before he averted his eyes and poked Mike, giving him a firm look as he pointed silently at the pile of letters in front of them. Mike made a face at Charlie but picked up another envelope as he’d been told, giving JC and Justin one last fleeting look before he opened it and began to skim to see if there was anything important there.

Justin’s hands had both begun to roam over JC’s body while they kissed, and before long he had both under JC’s shirt and was slowly sliding it upwards to reveal JC’s narrow muscular back to Chris, Joey, and Lance’s interested gazes while JC made soft noises into Justin's mouth and rocked slowly against him. JC suddenly pulled away a moment later to reach down and grab the hem of his shirt and pull it off quickly, dropping it carelessly behind him as he leaned in close to Justin to kiss him again. JC’s hands slid between them again to explore Justin’s familiar body, starting just above his shorts and roaming upwards over Justin’s chest, drawing a growl from Justin when they slid across his nipples without pausing.

JC giggled softly into their kiss as his hands continued up to rest on Justin’s shoulders, then pulled back a bit to look into Justin’s dark blue eyes as he smirked and said, "Y’know, I think your idea is better than mine, baby."

Justin grinned. "We could do both. Sex on the beach was fun."

JC laughed and shook his head. "Nope, I’ve had enough sand in places I didn’t know it could go for this week, thank you very much. How about we go disappear for a bit while the others finish up in here and get ready?"

Justin’s grin turned wicked. "If you were expecting me to say no I’m gonna disappoint you, babe."

JC chuckled and kissed Justin quickly, then looked over at Lance. "Is that okay with you guys?"

Lance and Joey both nodded as Chris smirked and said, "While Lance is changing clothes I intended to take advantage of him anyway, so go ahead."

Lance laughed and looked down at where Chris sat in the floor by his feet. "Oh yeah? And were you intending to ask or just assuming I’d let you do whatever you want?"

Chris rose to his knees and turned to look at Lance, still smirking. “No, I planned to wait until you stripped to change and then get down on my knees and beg. Among other things."

Charlie turned bright red and picked up another letter as Lance raised an eyebrow at Chris and said, "And you thought that’d work?"

Joey laughed. "Baby, you and I both _know_ it’d work. Chris’ damn good at his favorite hobby."

Chris smirked and looked over his shoulder at Joey. "Thanks, Joe." He looked back at Lance and moved a little closer to him as he added, "And I was _hoping_ it’d work. It won’t be half as embarrassing for either of us to be around Josh and Jup while they’re half naked and wet if we get off first."

Lance snorted, unable to help a slight grin as he admitted, "True." He looked at Chris a moment, pretending to consider it, then said, "Okay, but you’d better get your butt moving and find a swimsuit before I get there, or you can forget it."

Chris’ smirk widened. "Yessir!"  He jumped to his feet and quickly left the room, ignoring JC, Justin, and Joey’s laughter.

Lance waited until Chris had time to get out of earshot and then said to the room in general, "I probably should have mentioned I’m ordering pizza before I go get changed, huh?"

Joey chuckled and stood, stretching. "Babe, he’s gonna be beside himself by the time you get in there!"

"Yeah," Lance said with a sudden smirk, "but I bet he doesn’t complain."

Joey grinned and walked over to the couch to offer Lance a hand up. "No, as long as you eventually do get naked he’ll be happy, I’m sure."

Lance let Joey pull him to his feet and stepped in close to him, his smirk widening slightly as he put his arms around Joey to rest both hands on the taller man’s ass. "You’re better be there too, Joe-bear, I have plans for you."

"Wouldn’t miss it for the world, darlin’," Joey immediately replied, then leaned down with a grin to give Lance a slow loving kiss before he pulled back slightly. "I’ll go keep him from streakin’ around the house while you order the pizzas. Get at least one supreme with mushrooms and olives, would you please?"

Lance smiled up at Joey. "Of course. I shouldn’t be long."

"That’s good, he won’t wait long before he gets bored and tackles me." Joey gave Lance a grin and a quick kiss, then pulled away to leave as he added, "Not that I’m complaining."

Lance laughed and watched Joey go before he turned to JC and Justin and had to smile, wondering if they’d been kissing the whole time. He watched them for a moment before he decided they probably had been. JC was moving pretty insistently against Justin, and from what Lance had seen it took him a few minutes to get that fired up.

Lance ducked to grab an empty envelope off the floor and then dug into Justin’s backpack to get a pen – Justin had a dozen or more sharpies because he often got one when they did autographs then shoved it in his bag – then looked over at Mike and Charlie. "Do you two want me to order you some pizza?"

Mike looked at Charlie who nodded at Lance and said, "Yes, please," then looked at Mike and asked, "Pepperoni with extra cheese?"

Mike grinned and nodded, adding, "A large if you would, please."

Lance nodded, smiling as he jotted that down on the envelope. "No problem!" He looked at JC and Justin then and said, "Josh?" Lance watched the couple for another moment, then said, "Justin," a little louder, grinning when Justin tried to pull away while JC made a hungry noise and followed him instead of letting him break their kiss. "I’m about to order pizza," Lance went on then, sure Justin at least had heard him. "Do you two want one?"

Mike watched them interestedly, wondering if JC would let Justin answer this time, and had to chuckle when Justin gave up on getting JC to break the kiss and lifted one hand from JC’s ass to give Lance a thumb’s up instead.

Lance chuckled. "The usual?"

JC finally pulled away then to turn and give Lance a quick grin. "Please, and breadsticks too if you get Domino’s.”

Lance grinned and nodded. "We passed one on the way here and they probably deliver this far. If you go now you two’ll have about thirty minutes before the food gets here."

Justin gave him a smirk and ran a hand over JC’s ass as he said, "Thirty minutes sounds good."

JC chuckled and nodded, then easily stood, pulling Justin to his feet too as he stepped back. "And when the pizza gets here, we can go eat out on the deck."

Lance nodded again and turned to walk past the kitchen doorway into the den. "Yeah, I thought so too."

JC and Justin moved after him towards the kitchen as Justin said, "Have fun, Poof."

Lance gave them a quick grin over his shoulder. "Oh I will, have no fear." He disappeared into the den without waiting for a reply.

A moment later JC and Justin had disappeared into the kitchen, leaving Mike and Charlie alone. Mike watched Charlie begin to gather up the mail they had already read with a little smile for a moment before he started helping, wondering if Charlie would be interested in sneaking off for a little fun of their own once the stuff scattered all over the floor was cleaned up. He knew Charlie wouldn’t go for it before the mess was cleaned up, so he didn’t even bother to ask. Charlie took the fact they were working for the guys seriously and wasn’t about to shirk when they had something that obviously needed done sitting there waiting for them, the fact the guys had told them this was their week off notwithstanding.

 

 

 

JC and Justin were barely undressed when Justin took over and within a few moments Justin had JC on his back under him on the bed while JC made soft eager noses and rubbed up against him, one leg hooked around Justin’s hips to give him better leverage. They continued like that for a few minutes, kissing and stroking each other while Justin thrust insistently against JC until he suddenly realized what he was doing and controlled himself, slowing his thrusts and shifting slightly so he wasn’t pushing JC down against the bed anymore. JC felt the difference immediately and let out a little noise but wasn’t going to actually say anything until Justin suddenly rolled them over to put JC on top, wordlessly trying to get JC to take over yet again.

JC suddenly decided he had enough of Justin being afraid to do anything to him without JC practically begging him to and wondered if Justin wouldn’t listen to gentle persuasion maybe he could shock him into being himself again. JC had loved it how unrestrained and enthusiastic Justin was the first few times they were together and he was willing to try almost anything to get that back, so as soon as the idea occurred to him he pulled away to flop on his back next to Justin, ignoring Justin’s surprised expression as he looked up at the ceiling.

"I may have gotten away from Tony, but he’s still fucking up my life, and you’re letting him." JC hated saying that – however true it was – because he knew it would upset Justin, but hoped it would be worth it to both of them.

Justin gave JC a worried look, rolling to his side to face JC as he asked, "What are you talking about, Josh? What’d I do?"

JC turned his head to look at Justin, steeling himself against Justin’s expression and looking completely serious as he answered, "It’s what you won’t do, Justin. You’re letting what Tony did to me dictate what you do with me. I love you more than life, you know that, but the way you shy away from me every time you remember Tony is beginning to really get to me."

Justin flinched, looking upset and even scared as he hesitantly reached to touch JC’s arm, saying, "I— I don’t mean to, I just— I know he hurt you and he always made you do what _he_ wanted to do, and I don’t want it anything like that between us."

JC rolled to face Justin completely, looking into Justin’s dark blue eyes as he said softly, "The first two nights we were together you didn’t shy away, and you didn’t scare me, and we both did what we wanted to do. I _know_ you’d never hurt me, Justin, you don’t have to be afraid you’ll bring back bad memories no matter how intense things get between us. I’ll never love anyone half as much as I love you. I know I’m safe with you just as well as I know my own name, so you don’t have to be so careful."

Justin looked into JC’s eyes for a long moment, still obviously upset, then said, "If you’re sure."

JC gave him a sudden soft smile. "I’m sure, baby. Just relax and do what you feel, I can handle it, I promise. I love it when you get all intense while you make love to me, it makes me feel like I’m the sexiest thing you ever saw."

"You are," Justin said softly, lifting his hand to gently stroke JC’s cheek. "I love you more than anything, Josh. I just don’t want to hurt you, or upset you."

"You won’t," JC said with a smile, reaching up with his right hand to cover Justin’s left hand where it rested on his cheek. "I can take a lot more than you seem to think, baby. I’m not made of glass."

Justin finally gave him little smile and rolled JC to his back again as he leaned in to kiss him, but after only a moment he pulled away to look down into JC’s eyes. "Promise me right now that if I ever make you uncomfortable you’ll say something, no matter what."

JC sighed, looking up at Justin as he said patiently, "I promise, baby."

Justin gave JC a much happier smile and lowered his head to kiss him again, this time lingering to deepen the kiss as JC’s hands began to roam again. Justin rested his weight on one elbow after a moment and began slowly stroking JC’s body with the other hand and JC was soon arching into his touch, making soft encouraging noises as Justin finally moved completely over him again, making a conscious effort to stop holding back like JC had asked. Justin soon began licking and nipping his way down JC’s throat, growling softly as his teeth grazed JC’s collarbone and JC gasped and arched under him, his heels pushing against the bed to lift his hips to rub up against Justin. Justin instinctively thrust against JC then, pushing JC down hard against the bed, and the soft little cry of pleasure he got in reply eased the last of his doubts as JC’s hands tightened on his back, urging him to do it again.

 

 

 

It took Lance almost ten minutes to order the pizzas. The kid who answered the phone had no idea how to handle a phone order and repeated it back wrong three times, but eventually the manager took over got it right.

Lance hung up wondering what they taught in schools around here – or _if_ they taught – and walked into the kitchen to get a drink of water, surprised to find Mike at the double sink getting ready to do dishes. Charlie was nowhere to be seen, but Lance heard a slight rustle from the laundry room when he reached into one of the cabinets to get a glass so he assumed Charlie was folding the clean laundry.

Mike looked up to smile at Lance and stepped to one side to watch Lance fill a glass with water before he said, "Don’t worry about listening for the pizza guy, I’ll be in here and I’ve still got JC’s wallet."

Lance grinned. "Thanks, I was wondering how I’d hear when he gets here. I told him to come to the door under the carport."

Mike moved back over to continue putting dishes in the side of the sink that was full of hot soapy water. "You don’t have to thank me, boss."

Lance drained the glass and moved next to Mike to set it on the counter with the dirty dishes before he rested a hand on Mike’s shoulder as he said, "Still, I appreceiate it."

"You’re welcome." Mike gave him a quick smile and Lance returned it as he squeezed his shoulder, then he let go and turned to go join Joey and Chris, fully expecting to find them both naked and cuddling as they usually did after sex. He didn’t believe for a moment that Chris had waited ten minutes to start something, but he didn’t mind and was looking forward to playing around with them when they were both sated and he could take his time. Lance walked down the hallway to their door, not bothering to knock before he opened it, and when he stepped inside he stopped, his eyebrows going up.

It didn’t really surprise him to see Joey was sitting in the floor leaning against the dresser, or that Chris was in his lap naked, or even that the TV was on again with a video playing a bit too loud. What surprised him was that Joey was still dressed, and Chris wasn’t actively trying to get into Joey’s pants or dancing to the video – Chris _loved_ Van Halen – but was instead sitting quietly in Joey’s lap with his head on Joey’s shoulder while Joey stroked his back and whispered to him too softly for Lance to hear over the TV.

Joey realized someone was watching them a moment later and looked up at Lance to give him a smile. "That didn’t take too long."

Chris’ head popped up off Joey’s shoulder and he turned to look at Lance, a big grin blooming on his face. "Playtime!"

Lance chuckled and walked into the room, closing the door behind him but not bothering to lock it before he walked to the bed and sat down to take off his shoes. "The pizzas will be here in about twenty minutes."

Chris bounced to his feet and moved quickly over to the bed, jumping up on it to walk across and drop to his knees behind Lance. "Then we’d better get you naked in a hurry. Joe, get his pants."

Chris grabbed the hem of Lance’s shirt and dragged it upwards, making Lance laugh as he had to stop untying his shoe to lift his arms because Chris was determined to pull the t-shirt over his head. "Why didn’t you get Joe naked if you wanted to play so bad?" Lance asked, grinning at Chris over his shoulder. Chris just grinned back at him and pulled Lance back to half lay on the bed instead of answering, moving in immediately to kiss him.

Joey chuckled and moved over to finish removing Lance’s shoes, thinking that Chris probably wouldn’t answer that. Chris was having a harder time adjusting to some of the things Justin and JC had told them than he wanted to let on, and he wanted – _needed_ – to talk about it, but Joey knew he didn’t want to add to Lance’s worries. Chris would wait until Lance was busy or asleep and talk to Joey some more, Joey was sure, but he didn’t mind at all since he needed to talk about it too. Chris felt guilty for not taking care of JC even though JC had gone to great pains to be sure they didn’t know about Tony, and Chris just needed someone to talk to about it so he could reassure himself that there was nothing he could have done to prevent it.

Chris never held back with Joey, whether he was pissed or sad or just wanted to fuck Joey until neither of them could move, but with everyone else Chris almost always held back just a little bit. Chris had always considered Joey his equal and even deferred to his judgment on some things because Chris knew Joey was a lot more mature, and Joey had always known that in Chris’ eyes the other three needed their protection. He’d helped Chris do just that – protect and shelter them – even in the early days when he and Chris couldn’t be left alone together without fighting, and after Lance collapsed they had finally really talked, agreeing not to let their personal problems interfere with them protecting the kids in their care even though one of those ‘kids’ was older than Joey.

Joey pulled Lance’s other sock off and stood up, watching Chris and Lance kiss as he followed his train of thought, something that he often would stop to do and had made a lot of people think he was stupid over the years. He wasn’t – far from it actually – but he didn’t mind people thinking he was. Nobody ever suspected a stupid man was capable of outsmarting them, so people would often leave him an opening to do just that.

Joey knew the other four in the group almost as well as he knew himself, and he knew all the reasons Chris thought the other three needed protected, even _from_ themselves. JC had more musical information stored away in his pretty little head than anyone who hadn’t seen him use it would have ever believed, but he was still a sweet, clueless man who was completely naive about a lot of things. JC was intelligent, after years of watching him help Justin and Lance with their school work Joey didn’t doubt that a bit, but he didn’t have any street smarts to speak of and would trust anyone who seemed nice even though it had gotten him into trouble over and over again. Chris, Lance, and Joey had begun looking out for JC way back in Germany and had never stopped. Joey didn’t think they ever would, any more than they’d stop protecting each other, or Justin.

Justin was also an intelligent, talented young man, they all knew that even if they wouldn’t usually admit it to Justin, but he could be even more naive than JC. Justin’s cluelessness had amazed Joey in the early days when he had still been marveling that JC had made it to nineteen years old as innocent as he was. Of course, Justin could also be a complete diva or as childish as any ten year old by turns, something people outside the group never seemed to understand but that Joey knew was because most things in Justin’s life had come to him too easily. Lynn had always sheltered Justin from the baser things in life and given him everything she possibly could, and JC had picked up where she left off, making sure Justin didn’t get in with the wrong crowd while they were with Disney and helping him become one of the best performers on the Mickey Mouse Club even though Justin was one of the youngest.

When the group first got together, JC had made sure that it was understood that Justin would have to be protected at all costs, and they had all done just that, managing to shelter him so completely that he’d never really had to grow up. Justin had been forced to grow up a lot in the last few days though, something Joey wished hadn’t had to happen but that he knew couldn’t be avoided. He thought Justin was a man full of contradictions, someone who would play like a child at the drop of a hat or could have a technical conversation with any production engineer in the business, but Joey also knew Chris didn’t consider him a ‘man’ at all. Joey, Lance, and even JC saw that Justin was an adult capable of taking care of himself, but Justin was still the baby to Chris and probably always would be.

Lance... Joey smiled, finally dropping Lance’s sock on top of his shoes and moving closer to the bed to unbuckle Lance’s belt, ignoring the fact Chris had his hand half into Lance’s pants stroking through the soft red-gold hair below Lance’s belly button while he made out with the young ‘blond’. Lance was the most capable one in the group, the one everyone went to with questions or problems and who always had a good answer. Thinking of him as ‘daddy Bass’ was natural even though he was eight years younger than Chris for the simple reason Lance took care of them as though they were his kids, doing a hundred little things for them that four grown men should have been used to doing for themselves but that he had done for so long that they seldom even thought about doing something as simple as buying toothpaste. Sure, Lance was only two years older than Justin, but he didn’t _act_ that young. Lance was more world-wise than JC or Justin, more mature than Chris or even Joey, knew more than any of the others about a hundred different things, and if he didn’t know something he knew who did and could have the answer in minutes.

Joey tugged experimentally at Lance’s jeans and boxers then and Lance obligingly lifted his hips to let him pull them off, making Joey chuckle and drawing Chris’ attention.

"Whatcha laughing at, Joe-bear?" Chris asked, smirking at Joey as his fingers slid lower into the denser curls at Lance’s crotch.

Lance took advantage of Chris’ distraction to sit back up and reach for Joey, scooting closer to the edge of the bed and away from Chris’ teasing fingers as he reached to pull Joey down for a kiss that earned a low pleased growl from Joey.

Chris avidly watched them for a moment, licking his lips and enjoying the flashes of soft wet lips, tongue and teeth as Joey and Lance kissed hungrily, then suddenly Chris blinked and said, "Hey! No fair, Joe. I was playing with that!"

Lance made an annoyed noise and broke the kiss to give Chris a dirty look as he asked indignantly, "I’m a ‘that’ now?!"

Chris looked surprised, then laughed and moved closer to Lance as he grinned. "I meant your _tongue_ , baby, not you."

Lance snorted and pushed Chris away. "Well, now you can just wait a minute, it’s Joey’s turn."

Chris pouted and sat back a moment as he watched Lance stand to reach for Joey’s shirt and begin to take it off, then he grinned and moved over to the edge of the bed, reaching for the button on Joey’s jeans. "Okay, Joe first, then it’s my turn."

Joey chuckled as Lance dropped his shirt in the floor and bent to scoop Chris up off the edge of the bed, grinning as Chris yelled, "Joe! Put me down!"

Joey easily tossed Chris over onto the middle of the bed and then moved over to settle his hands on either side of Lance’s bare waist. "Me first huh?" Joey asked, "What would you like me to do, babe?" Joey didn’t wait for an answer before easily pushing Lance back onto the bed as Chris grinned and watched.

Lance gave Joey a wicked little grin, scooting further onto the bed and incidentally half into Chris’ lap, and Chris’ hands started stroking over Lance’s smooth chest and shoulders as Lance said, "Me."

Joey smirked and started to follow him but paused when Chris said, "Get rid of your pants, man, they’ll just be in the way."

Joey grinned and did just that, kicking out of his jeans and underwear before he joined the other two on the bed, moving over next them.

Lance looked up at Chris and asked, "What’d you do with the lube last night?"

Chris looked thoughtful a moment, absently plucking at Lance’s nipples and making him moan softly, then suddenly pulled away to start looking under the pillows piled haphazardly at the head of the bed. "I think I threw it over here."

Lance chuckled and grabbed one of the pillows as Chris tossed it aside, settling comfortably on it as he said, "Find it for us.” He reached for Joey without waiting for Chris to agree, pulling Joey down for a kiss.

Chris didn’t find the little tube of lubricant under the pillows and sat back looking around as he tried to think of where it could have landed, his eyes settling on Joey and Lance as he watched them kiss for a moment before he suddenly remembered that Lance had picked the comforter up out of the floor and thrown it back on the bed after they got dressed that morning. Chris moved to the foot of the bed to dig under the blankets then, and after a moment he grinned and pulled a small tube out from under them, but when he saw it he immediately frowned. "Dammit, why is it the lube is always empty when I go looking for it?"

Joey and Lance pulled apart then, both chuckling as they looked at Chris, then Lance asked, "Was that the only one we had?"

Chris shrugged. "Hell if I know."

Joey grinned. "We were out this morning, remember? You were gonna go get more but Lance didn’t want to wait."

Lance made a face, running one hand down Joey’s back. "I don’t want to wait now either! It’s not like we have all day or something, the pizzas will be here before too long."

Joey gave Lance a bemused look and said, "Baby, if we keep this up you’re gonna be sore as hell."

Lance snorted, gently pinching Joey’s hip. "It’s my ass, I’d know if it hurts when you fuck it raw. It doesn’t, so quit stalling."

Chris laughed and climbed off the bed. "I’m gonna go get some more from Jup."

Chris bent to grab a pair of jeans out of the floor and began to pull them on as Joey grinned over his shoulder at him and said, "Don’t take forever, Critter."

Chris looked back over at them as he walked towards the door, buttoning the jeans as he went. "I won’t, I’m sure Justin knows where he put the lube. He might lose anything else – starting with his mind – but he ain’t gonna lose the lube or JC’s music."

Lance chuckled at that but didn’t say anything. It was sort of hard to talk with two tongues in your mouth.

 

 


	61. Chapter 61

 

~~~~ 61 ~~~~

 

Charlie walked out of the laundry room a few minutes after Lance left the kitchen, moving over to hop up and sit on the counter near Mike, who was scrubbing one of the skillets Lance had used to cook the omelets. Charlie watched Mike work for a minute or two and then looked down at his own knees, his expression serious and a little unhappy as he thought about the things JC had told them.

Mike looked up as soon as he finished scrubbing the skillet, smiling until he saw Charlie’s face, then his expression sobered as he said quietly, "You look like your dog just died. Spill, Char."

Charlie looked up immediately and watched Mike start working on the other pan as he asked softly, "How could he live like that?"

Mike didn’t ask who Charlie meant, sure that JC was on his mind again. "I don’t know, baby," he answered, looking up again to meet Charlie’s gaze. "He thought Tony loved him. I’d bet he stayed more for Tony than for himself."

"But how could he let Tony do that when he wasn’t even in love with him?" Charlie asked again, still speaking softly. "You know I love you more than anything, Mikey, but I’d never let you hurt me like Tony hurt Josh. I’d be gone in a heartbeat."

Mike smiled suddenly, giving him a quick decisive nod. "Good! Don’t ever let anyone hurt you, baby, not even me." Mike put the second skillet in the other side of the sink and began working on a plate as he went on, "And to answer your question, I don’t think Josh really let himself see that Tony was hurting him. He would never hurt someone he loved, so it was hard for him to believe Tony would either. Make sense?"

Charlie looked thoughtful a long moment before he nodded slowly. "Yeah, it does." Mike gave him a quick smile and kept working on the dishes, and Charlie just watched him for a few minutes before he suddenly asked, "Do you think they’d be upset if I ask if it’s okay if we leave the room when they start talking about personal stuff?"

Mike shook his head immediately without even thinking about it. "No, I’m sure they wouldn’t. Josh would probably even be grateful, he was pretty unhappy about upsetting you."

Charlie looked back down at his knee to begin toying with a hole in his jeans, wishing he’d been able to avoid upsetting JC. Charlie just could not see putting up with the things JC had already told them about, much less living with _worse_ things. Charlie couldn’t even imagine worse than having someone you trusted rape you or hurt you on purpose, and he quite simply had no clue how Justin could take hearing about it. It was obvious to Charlie that Justin loved JC and would do anything for him, and Charlie was a little in awe of the fact that he could listen to more than Charlie had already heard and not go crazy.

Mike looked up as he finished washing the last of the silverware a few minutes later to see Charlie picking at his jeans with an unhappy expression, pulling dangling threads and making the hole in them larger while obviously still brooding over how JC had been treated. Mike dried his hands on the towel hanging over the sink and then moved over to stand in front of Charlie, tipping the red-head’s chin up until Charlie’s green eyes met his before he said softly, "Baby, you can’t change it, so stop dwelling on it. Think about how he and Justin are together. You can’t doubt when you watch them that they’re in love and Josh is happy and safe, and he is never going to be hurt by that bastard again."

Charlie smiled a bit, lifting his hands to rest them on Mike’s shoulders. "I’ll try, love."

Mike moved closer and rested both hands on Charlie’s waist, looking up slightly at him as he grinned. "I know how you can distract yourself anytime you need to."

Charlie’s smile widened a bit. "Oh yeah? How?"

"Think of him in those shorts of his, that’ll distract you from everything but how not to embarrass yourself in front of him," Mike replied, still grinning.

Charlie looked surprised, and then he laughed. "That would do it for sure. Those shorts – or lack thereof – should be illegal."

Mike smirked. "I kind of like them. I want a pair."

Charlie grinned and lifted one hand to toy with Mike’s hair, enjoying the way the back hung loose so that he could slide his fingers into it. "Sounds good to me, you’d look hot."

"I don’t want them for me," Mike said, his smirk never wavering. "I want them for you."

Charlie’s eyes widened and he stopped playing with Mike’s hair. "You’re joking."

"Nope," Mike said, "you’d look great, Char. Your legs may not be as long as Josh’s are, but they’re just as nice and your ass is better."

Charlie laughed and swatted him lightly on the shoulder. "It is not!"

Mike let his hands slide down from Charlie’s waist to the ass in question, pulling him closer to the edge of the counter. "Yeah baby, it is. Josh is beautiful, but his ass isn’t nearly as perfect as yours. You’re gorgeous."

Charlie let himself be pulled to the very edge of the counter and then looked at Mike for a long moment before he said, "Well, I’m glad you think so, love."

"Think, hell," Mike replied with a smirk. "I know!"

Charlie grinned and leaned forward to kiss Mike instead of arguing, threading the fingers of both hands into Mike’s long blond hair as Mike responded warmly, licking into his mouth. They kissed for several minutes, licking and sucking at each other’s tongues and lips while pressing closer to each other as Charlie’s legs instinctively wrapped around Mike’s waist, and both of them were breathing harder and aroused when Charlie finally pulled away. He pretended that he hadn’t heard Mike’s slight noise of protest as he leaned his forehead against Mike’s and whispered, "I should go put those towels up, love, and there’s dishes left to do."

Mike sighed, closing his eyes and visibly trying to control himself as his hands slid over Charlie’s ass again, then he opened his eyes and kissed Charlie fleetingly before he easily picked Charlie up off the edge of the counter to set him on his feet. "Okay, I’ll get busy, but if we get done before the pizza guy gets here we get to make out a little more."

Charlie couldn’t help a grin as he tightened his fingers in Mike’s hair, pulling him down for a quick kiss. "Deal."

 

 

 

Chris walked quickly down the hall, pulling Joey’s jeans up when they threatened to fall off and trying not to stumble over the long cuffs, thinking all the while that it might be a good idea to pay attention to which pants he grabbed next time. He could wear Lance’s jeans with no problem and most of Joey’s too, but there were several pairs of jeans that were long even on Joey, so on Chris they were almost comical. When he reached JC and Justin’s door he paused to listen but they were fairly quiet so he knocked, hoping he wouldn’t be interrupting anything.

JC’s voice immediately asked, "Who is it?"

"Chris."

"C’mon in," Justin replied, sounding amused.

Chris opened the door to see JC and Justin sitting up against the headboard, the fact JC was sprawled comfortably across Justin’s lap with a strategically placed pillow covering him the only thing keeping them both from showing Chris everything they had to offer.

Chris grinned at them and pulled Joey’s jeans up again. "Three guesses."

Justin laughed. "Dude, I don’t even need one guess. It’s in my gym bag."

Chris chuckled and crossed the room to where they’d piled their bags in the corner. "We ran out last night, but Lance wouldn’t wait for me to get more this morning so we did without. He doesn’t wanna wait now either, but I think Joe’ll probably make him."

Justin just chuckled and shook his head but JC’s eyebrows went up and he watched Chris unzip the gym bag as he asked, "Why wouldn’t Lance wait? It only takes a minute to walk in here, and he doesn’t even have to do it himself."

Chris glanced up to give them a wicked little grin and then looked back down to pick out a few tubes. "He’s not the most patient guy in the world when he wants Joe to do him, especially when he has Joey right there with him all naked and sexy and ready to go."

Justin chuckled again and Chris stood and walked around the bed back towards the door as JC said, "I hope Lance has enough sense not to overdo it, if he does that very often he’ll be sore as hell."

Chris paused at the door to give them another grin. "Joey said the same thing, and Lance’s answer was it’s his ass and he’d know if it hurt."

JC had to laugh at that, and Justin grinned as he whispered something in JC’s ear that made JC turn on his lap, giving Chris a glimpse of JC’s ass out of the corner of his eye that made him look back with a grin as he stepped out of the room. Chris resisted the urge to linger and watch them though, closing the door behind him and then walking quickly back down the hall, and he was almost halfway to the door when he tripped on the long cuffs of the jeans, stumbling and barely keeping on his feet as he let go of the jeans to reach out to steady himself on the wall. He grabbed the sagging jeans and jerked them up again before he moved a bit more carefully the last few feet to the door. Chris let go of the jeans again to open it and went inside, closing it behind him and immediately kicking out of the offending pants – he didn’t have to unbutton them or anything – before he looked up at the bed and grinned.

Joey had Lance pinned face down on the bed, his hands holding Lance’s wrists down against the pillows while he sat on the back of Lance’s thighs, licking and nibbling at the nape of Lance’s neck while Lance made low impatient noises Chris was sure were supposed to be words.

Chris smirked and crossed the room, dropping the lube on the bedside table and then stepping up quickly onto the mattress as Joey looked up. "Can I play too, Joebear?"

Joey grinned and moved off of Lance. "It’s about time, Critter, he wouldn’t have let me distract him much longer."

Lance snorted and rolled to his side, giving Joey a dirty look. "I still say there was no reason to wait, it’s not like I’m that ti—"

"Just lay back and let us treat you right," Chris said with a grin, cutting Lance off.

"Yeah," Joey agreed, "we know you can take it, but we’d rather do it the right way."

Lance flopped to his back between them with a theatrical sigh.  "Okay, I’ll lay here and try to be good."

Joey grinned and leaned down closer to Lance as he said, "You’re always good, baby boy, never doubt that."

Lance couldn’t help a soft chuckle at that as Joey kissed him, then made a soft hungry noise when Chris sucked gently at the reddened spot on his collarbone and began to trail kisses down Lance’s chest, one hand sliding up Lance’s inner thigh as Chris licked across Lance’s nipple and debated telling them to do him first. He knew that after Joey was through with Lance neither of them would be ready to fuck him for a little while and the pizzas would be here soon, so if he wanted one of them to do him he’d have to speak up soon. Chris combed his fingers up through sweat-damp red-gold curls then and felt Lance’s hips lift slightly against his hand, making him grin against Lance’s chest as he suddenly changed his mind. He’d get them both to do him later, right now Lance was practically begging for it and Chris wasn’t about to let him go disappointed.

Chris stopped kissing Lance with a smirk a moment later to watch him, absently stroking as Lance made low noises, his hips lifting to meet Chris’ hand as he kissed Joey hungrily. Chris’ hand stilled suddenly then just to see what Lance would do and Lance growled, making Joey lift his head enough to look at Chris to see what he was up to. Chris winked at Joey and then flexed his hand as Joey chuckled softly, drawing a low groan from Lance as he arched his back and reached for Joey again, not bothering to speak as Joey let Lance pull him down into another kiss without argument. Joey grinned inwardly when Lance gasped into the kiss a moment later, sucking on Lance’s tongue as he felt Lance spread his legs and the thought crossed his mind that Chris just might enjoy driving Lance over the edge even more than he did.

 

 

 

Mike stood near the table, putting JC’s wallet back into his back pocket as Charlie closed the door behind the delivery guy and locked it back. There was a pile of pizza boxes on the table next to Mike that were so hot they steamed in the cool kitchen as Charlie turned to look at him, debating whether to have Mike go get the guys or to do it himself. If he went to tell them himself, he’d almost certainly be embarrassed because they had no sense of shame, but if he sent Mike then the tall blond would likely see whatever it was they were doing, which was almost as bad.

"Do you think I ought to tell them the pizzas are here?" Mike asked.

Charlie nodded, making up his mind. "Yeah, they wanted to spend some time out on the beach today and it’ll be dark soon. I’ll carry the food outside while you do that, okay?" Charlie wasn’t the least bit worried about Mike straying, and the more he thought about it the more he figured letting the others give Mike ideas wasn’t entirely a bad thing as long as Charlie didn’t have to be there at the time.

Mike smiled and walked over to put his arms around Charlie, giving him a squeeze. "They’re really hot, babe, don’t burn yourself."

Charlie returned the smile and the hug. "I’ll be careful."

Mike ducked to give him a quick kiss then and was surprised when Charlie’s lips immediately parted against his, silently offering permission for Mike to deepen the kiss if he wanted to. Mike wanted to of course – he _always_ wanted to -- so  he did, ignoring Charlie’s slight chuckle as he nudged him backwards until Charlie’s back hit the narrow wall by the laundry room door with a soft thump. Mike kissed Charlie until they were both breathless and then began to trail kisses down Charlie’s neck while Charlie leaned his head back against the wall, holding on to Mike’s shoulders and trying to catch his breath as he fleetingly wished they had a bit more time before they had to go get the guys.

Mike had just reached the collar of Charlie’s t-shirt when Charlie murmured softly, "We work for them love, we don’t have to act out their songs."

Mike lifted his head to look into Charlie’s amused eyes, grinning at him as he moved against him again. "I like that song! I wish my Shorty would dance me up against a wall, but he won’t at any of the clubs we go to."

Charlie chuckled, shaking his head as he pushed off the wall to move even closer to Mike without really even thinking about it. "Not around here, Mikey. We’d out ourselves and get arrested too in one fell swoop. Wait until we get someplace a little more gay friendly, then you can embarrass me in public, okay?"

Mike smirked and pressed Charlie back against the wall again. "We’re already out, remember? Doc’s probably told everyone from the school counselors to the minister at your mom’s church by now, and his nurses are even worse gossips than he is. You remember how it was all over town in just a few days when Raelynn got pregnant."

The Baptist preacher’s sixteen year old daughter getting pregnant had been big gossip for almost as long as the pregnancy, especially after Raelynn admitted the father was her best friend Patty’s older brother and that they had been having sex for two years. That had put the many nights Raelynn slept over at Patty’s house in a whole new light and scandalized half the town – which was rather small since tourists and the folks who catered to them didn’t count as far as the ‘townies’ were concerned – even though Tucker and Rae were obviously in love and planned to be married just as soon as she turned eighteen. They had to wait that long because she couldn’t marry him without her parents’ permission until then, and her father refused to give permission.

Charlie made a face at Mike’s comment and then his eyes widened as he said softly, "Shit."

Mike looked confused and pulled back a bit. "What? You knew he’d talk."

"Mom doesn’t have the number here," Charlie said, obviously worried as he pulled away from Mike to move towards the phone. "I have to call her, she’s probably beside herself. I didn’t even tell her about us and she’ll want to know a million things and—"

Mike took a step after Charlie and grabbed his hips, stopping him and gently pulling him back against his chest as he slid his arms around Charlie’s waist and said softly, "Charlie, stop. Why don’t we just go see her after supper? I’m sure the guys won’t mind, and that way I can help you talk to her, okay?"

Charlie held himself rigid in Mike’s embrace for a moment before he sighed and relaxed, leaning back against him. "Okay. I’d like for you to be with me when I tell her, it’ll make it a lot easier on me if mom can talk to you and know you’re serious about this too."

Mike chuckled softly and kissed Charlie’s temple. "I know she thinks I’m a world-class screwup sometimes, but I’ve always been serious about how much you mean to me, even she knows that."

Charlie smiled slightly at that and rested his hands on Mike’s arms. "She asked me not long ago – the night we ran out of gas because you forgot to fill up before we went for that drive, remember? – why you’ve always been my best friend when we have so little in common. I told her that you understand me better than anyone in the world, even better than I know myself, and that you’ve always been there for me when I needed you and I knew you always would be. I couldn’t really explain it any better than that then." Charlie paused a moment and then asked more softly, "How do you tell your mother that you’re in love with your best friend and he loves you back, and that the love makes up for the few things you can’t agree on?"

Mike leaned down to put his cheek next to Charlie’s as he murmured, "Just tell her, baby. She should understand."

"JC’s mother didn’t understand. Yours didn’t," Charlie said quietly, not really wanting to bring that up but feeling like he should say it.

Mike snorted softly. "My mother _hates_ me, and Josh’s mother is just the stupidest woman alive for hurting him like she did. Justin’s mom is happy for her son because being with JC makes him happy, and I know your mom loves you and would do anything to be sure you’re happy too."

Charlie sighed and rubbed his cheek against Mike’s, knowing how true that all was and wishing JC and Mike’s mothers had loved their sons even half as much as Justin’s mother loved him. Charlie knew his own mother loved him and that she could forgive him almost anything, probably even being in love with another guy since he had a feeling she might have some suspicions anyway. After a long moment Charlie finally patted Mike’s hands. "Let me go, love. You need to let the guys know the pizzas are here."

Mike made a face and then kissed Charlie’s cheek before he let him go and headed for the hall. "Don’t try and carry all of those by yourself, Char. I’ll be back in a minute to help."

Charlie gave Mike’s retreating back a bemused look and then moved over to the table to easily pick up the five pizzas and two boxes of cheesy bread, wondering why Mike seemed to think he needed more help with things all of a sudden. Charlie thought it was cute, really, even though it was a little ridiculous since Mike had always just taken it for granted that Charlie was quite capable of taking care of himself until now. Charlie started towards the den with the pizzas then, thinking that he was kind of enjoying being pampered for a change and wondering how long Mike would keep it up. Charlie didn’t really think Mike was the type to pamper him forever, but he had been wrong before so he supposed anything was possible.

Mike walked down the hallway to JC and Justin’s room first, figuring that they’d been in there the longest so they were more likely to be finished playing around and maybe even dressed. He heard music when he reached their door, but he knocked anyway and almost immediately heard Justin’s voice say, "It’s open."

Mike opened the door to see Justin sprawled on their very messy bed in nothing but a pair of oversized swim trunks while he watched JC, who was wearing the brief cut-off shorts he’d had on earlier while singing and moving to the music in the open area directly in front of the sliding glass doors. The song that was playing was one Mike knew, ‘ _When I See You Smile_ ’ by Bad English, and Mike stopped to watch as JC sang softly, " _’_ _Yeah I can face the world, oh you know I can do anything now, when I see you smile. Oh yeah, baby when I see you smile... Smile at me._ ’" When the song ended JC stopped dancing, giving Mike a quick grin as he walked the short distance over to the bed to put one knee on the mattress and lean across to give Justin a quick kiss before he turned and sat on the edge of the bed facing Mike.

"Whatcha need, Mike?" Justin asked then, grinning as he sat up.

The next song, ‘ _The Deeper the Love_ ’ by Whitesnake, started playing as Mike returned the grin and watched Justin scoot over to the edge of the bed behind JC. "Great music. I came to tell you the pizzas are here."

JC grinned. "Hey, great, I’m starving! Did you tell the others yet?"

Mike shook his head. "I was just about to."

"Don’t bother," Justin said with a smile, "we’ll let them know, they’re probably still playing around."

Mike grinned. "I hoped you’d offer. Charlie and I’ll have the pizzas and some drinks on the table outside when you guys get ready for them."

JC let Justin pull him back against his chest as he laughed and said, "We’ll be out there in just a minute, okay?"

Mike nodded. "Sure, no hurry. Well, unless you don’t like cold pizza."

JC and Justin both started laughing at that but after a moment JC saw Mike’s confused look and controlled himself enough to grin and say, "Inside joke, sorry."

Justin smirked, stroking JC’s thigh as he added, " _Very_ inside."

JC grinned a little wider and tried to ignore Justin as he said, "We won’t be long, they’re used to getting dressed in a hurry."

Mike chuckled as turned back to the door. "We’ll be out on the deck."

"Thanks," Justin said, and then watched Mike leave before he gave JC a squeeze and began to softly sing along with the music while JC shifted enough to turn sideways in his arms and watch him with a smile. "’ _So when the sun goes down, and those nights are growing colder, I will be there, looking over your shoulder._ _‘_ _Cause the deeper the love, the stronger the emotion, and the stronger the love, the deeper the devotion... I_ _’_ _m never gonna let you go, in my heart I know, I love you, I love you, oh baby, I really love you..._ ’"

Justin leaned forward then to kiss JC, making a soft pleased noise when JC’s lips parted and licking slowly into his mouth as the song ‘ _Don_ _’_ _t Fade Away_ ’, also by Whitesnake, started playing. Justin finally pulled away just as the first chorus ended, smiling at JC as he said softly, "I do love you. I can never say it enough."

JC smiled back at him, lifting one hand to cup Justin’s cheek. "I love you too, Justin, more than anything."

Justin gave him a sweet smile and a quick kiss, then said, "We’d better get a move on, we told Mike we’d be right out."

"Okay, baby." JC grinned and stood, walking over to the dresser to turn off the CD player as Justin stood and walked to the door to wait for him, and a moment later they were both headed down the hall to the room the other three shared. JC knocked lightly on the door, tempted to just tell them the pizzas were here from where they were and then go outside but he didn’t, instead waiting for a response.

"Who is it?" Joey’s voice asked.

"Josh."

"Come in! Please!" Chris enthusiastically replied.

JC and Justin grinned at each other and JC opened the door so they could go in, closing it behind them quickly when they saw that Joey was standing by the dresser in the process of pulling up a pair of shorts while Chris sat on the edge of the bed watching him, completely naked and not even attempting to hide it.

"Where’s Scoop?" Justin asked with a grin, watching Joey begin to dig in one of the suitcases on the dresser while JC carefully avoided looking at Chris.

Joey finally found what he was after and threw a pair of shorts at Chris. "Put some clothes on, dumbass." He looked over at JC and Justin, adding, "He had to go take a shower."

Justin’s grin widened a bit. "And y’all didn’t join him?"

Chris pouted and stood to put the shorts on. "He wouldn’t let me!"

Joey snorted. "It’s your own fault, you’re the one who got lube in his _hair_."

Justin tried hard not to laugh as JC made a face and said, "Eww, I don’t want to know how."

Chris stuck his tongue out at JC. "It wasn’t anything kinky, I just forgot I had the tube in my hand."

"And got it all over me and the pillow," Lance said, walking out of the bathroom in a pair of swim trunks that hung to his knees.

Justin laughed when he saw him and said, "Dude, I don’t think those are your shorts."

"Nah, really?" Lance said sarcastically, then went on in a more normal tone, "These are Joey’s. Mine aren’t in my suitcase." He gave Chris a pointed dirty look at that and added, "Again."

Chris suddenly started picking up pillows and blankets and tossing them back on the bed while avoiding looking at Lance, making JC and Justin both grin while Joey chuckled softly and leaned against the dresser to watch him.

"What’d you guys need?" Lance asked with a smile, then glanced at Chris and moved over to quickly take a pillow out of his hands before he could throw it on the bed. "Don’t do that sweetheart, you’ll get it all over the others." Lance peeled the pillowcase off and tossed it towards a pile of clothes – mostly his since Chris and Joey’s were scattered all over the room – by the dresser, then gave the pillow back to Chris as he looked expectantly over at JC and Justin.

"Pizzas are here," JC said immediately.

"Yeah, and Mike and Charlie are taking them outside for us," Justin added.

Lance grinned and started across the room towards where JC and Justin stood at the door. "Great, I’m starving!"

"So am I," JC said with an answering grin, "so let’s go eat."

Chris grinned. "Sounds like a plan to me." He moved to join the others as Joey pushed off from the dresser and did the same.

Justin was the first out of the door, followed closely by JC and Lance with Joey and Chris bringing up the rear, and they had just reached the kitchen when Mike walked quickly in from the living room, carrying the cordless phone as he said, "They’ll be out in just— Here they are, hold on a sec." Mike took the phone from his ear and gave them a quick grin as he walked around the table and held the phone out to Lance. "It’s Joanna."

Lance grinned and took the phone. "Thanks." He put the receiver to his ear and then asked, "Hey Jo, whatcha need?"

"Hi boss!" Joanna replied immediately. "We’re nearby and I was wondering if we could stop by to bring you guys a few things and those papers you need to sign before we head back up to the hotel."

"That depends, who’s we?" Lance asked, chuckling softly as he continued on to the den after the others.

"Me and ‘Chelle. Julie was with us too but she picked up a guy at the mall and went clubbing so I doubt we’ll see her again until tomorrow, if then." Joanna laughed and added, "Oh, and Jules was helping me and ‘Chelle this morning and saw the contracts for Charlie and Mike, and she wants me to ask if you guys are still hiring."

Lance grinned. "What do you think, Jo? You’ve spent a lot more time with her than I have." Chris gave Lance a questioning look over his shoulder as they walked through the den and Lance moved the phone away from his mouth to say, "Julie wants to know if we’re still hiring."

Chris rolled his eyes and walked out onto the deck after the others with Lance right behind him, listening to Joanna as she said, "Well, she loves to gossip but she can keep her mouth shut when she wants to boss, she’s never told anyone about me and ‘Chelle that I know of. If I were you I’d not tempt her with knowing too much juicy gossip about you guys, but doing the job she does now or a bit more on your payroll would be pretty safe I think."

"Okay, next time you see her tell her we’re thinking about it and we’ll let her know sometime next week." Lance stopped next to the picnic table not far outside the sliding glass doors. "And you and ‘Chelle are welcome to come by, we’re not going anywhere this evening. When you get here just follow the porch around back, we’re all outside."

"No problem! We ought to be there before long. Talk to you then."

"Sure," Lance replied, waiting until Joanna hung up to turn off the phone and set it on the table.

"What’d Joanna need?" Chris asked, passing Lance an open Pepsi as soon as the blond sat down in the empty spot Chris had left next to him on the bench.

"Thanks, sweetheart. She’s nearby and wanted to bring some paperwork by for me to sign it," Lance replied with a smile, then took a drink and watched as Joey, Mike, and Justin began passing pizzas around while Charlie made sure they all had a paper plate.

JC nibbled at a breadstick, watching Justin give him three pieces of pizza as soon as Charlie sat a plate in front of him, then he swallowed and asked, "Baby, why can’t I decide how hungry I am?"

Justin looked up from putting several slices on his own plate, grinning. "Only if you want more."

JC snorted softly, obviously not amused. "Justin, I’m not two years old."

"Oh I know that, trust me," Justin said with a wicked little grin, not really believing JC was as unhappy as he looked. He closed the pizza box he held and put it with the two they hadn’t opened yet before he smiled at JC and went on. "I’m gonna make sure you eat, babe, you oughta know that by now."

Justin reached for a can of Mountain Dew then as JC gave him a patently false wide-eyed look and said sarcastically, "No, really?! I hadn’t noticed." Justin was surprised by that and looked at JC, ignoring what he was doing as JC cocked his head to one side and watched Justin pop the tab on the can he’d picked up.

"Justin," JC asked with a sudden grin, "why did you just open a Dr. Pepper?"

Justin looked down at the can he’d opened and then made a face. "Damn."

Joey chuckled and reached to take it from him as Chris smirked at Justin and said, "Pay attention when you try again, Infant. We can only drink just so many."

Justin stuck his tongue out at Chris and reached for another can, managing to pick up a green one that time as JC said, "I was serious though, baby. I want to know why you always get to decide how hungry I am."

Justin put the can on the table and looked at JC. "Well, until this last week you never seemed to remember to eat unless I told you to, and you always stay so skinny..."

JC snorted softly and gave Justin a smile. "Justin, you’ve known me forever, you know I’ve always been ‘nothing but lungs and hair’ as Wade so loves to remind me. Things were bad for a while, but that was a long time ago and I’m fine now. You don’t have to worry anymore."

Justin just looked at him for a long moment before he said softly, "Josh, I can’t help it. I love you."

JC sighed, sure that Justin wasn’t going to even try not to worry about him. "I love you too, baby, I always have."

Justin smiled and leaned in to kiss JC quickly. "I’ll try not to be so pushy about making you eat, okay?"

JC gave Justin a wry grin and squeezed his hand. "It’s okay, baby, if it makes you feel better. I’m used to it now and you’re right, half the time I do forget to eat."

Justin’s smile widened a bit. "Like right now, you’re letting your pizza get cold."

JC smirked. "But I like cold pizza."

Justin grinned back at him and was about to say something that would obviously be wicked when Lance said, "C’mon you two, eat now, then you can play all evening."

Justin’s grin widened at that and JC looked quite wicked as they both looked at Lance. "Is that an invitation?" Justin asked, his blue eyes sparkling with mischief.

Lance’s eyes widened. "No! It wasn’t."

"Well damn," JC said, pouting. "That sounded like fun."

Justin grinned and put one arm around JC. "Don’t worry, Josh, I’ll play with you."

JC pretended to think about that and then scooted a little closer to Justin, giving him a little grin. "Sounds good, baby. What did you have in mind?" JC picked up a piece of his pizza and began to nibble on it.

Justin smirked and leaned in close to whisper in JC’s ear while JC’s little grin slowly changed into a positively wicked smirk. Justin pulled away and picked up a piece of pizza off his own plate then, still grinning at JC.

JC swallowed a mouthful of pizza and grinned at Justin. "Hurry up and eat, baby, that sounds like fun."

Chris snorted. "I thought you wanted to spend some time on the beach?"

JC turned his head to look at Chris while he chewed, then swallowed and grinned at him. "Well, there and in the water. Mostly in the water though."

"Chris, don’t ask," Lance immediately said, making Joey chuckle even though his mouth was full.

Chris leaned his head against Lance’s shoulder and pouted at him. "But babe."

Lance smiled at him. "Yes?"

"I wanna know!" Chris replied, still pouting.

"Then wait and watch, sweetheart. Knowing them, I doubt they’ll try very hard to hide." Lance grinned and picked up a piece of pizza, adding, "Now eat," just before he took a bite.

Chris looked surprised, then grinned and started eating too. Lance was right, they had a great view of the beach from the deck and they could always just tag along with JC and Justin when they went to go play.

 

 


	62. Chapter 62

 

~~~~ 62 ~~~~

 

Lance and Charlie were already through eating and Joey and Mike were nearly done when Chris spoke up almost half an hour later, asking, "Josh, when are you going to make the kid cover that bet?"

JC, who had been taking a drink of Justin’s Mountain Dew, swallowed quickly, looking surprised a moment before he suddenly grinned. "Hey, that’s right, I did win the bet..."

JC trailed off and looked at Justin, debating what he’d make Justin do. He’d had something definite in mind when he made the bet – Justin singing O-Town karaoke in public – but now he was wondering if that wasn’t a bit too cruel, knowing how Justin hated O-Town’s music. Still, just the idea of Justin standing in some club singing ‘ _Liquid Dreams_ _’_ was enough to make JC’s grin widen, so maybe he _should_ make him do that. The other guys would love it, and it wouldn’t hurt Justin to sing one song, right?

JC’s grin had turned into an almost evil smirk by then, prompting Justin to say, "You’ve been hangin’ around Chris too much, babe, you look postively wicked. Beautiful, but still wicked." Justin remembered then that JC had said Chris would enjoy it, so he asked warily, "What are you gonna make me do?"

JC made a decision and gave Justin a big grin, his eyes all crinkly as he tried not to laugh at the worried look on Justin’s face. "Just sing me a song, baby, that’s all. You don’t mind singing."

Mike and Charlie sat quietly across the table from JC and Justin, both of them grinning and wondering what JC would make Justin sing. JC was trying too hard to look innocent, so he had to be up to something.

Justin’s eyes narrowed. "Uh-huh. What song?" If Chris was supposed to like it, it had to be embarrassing.

"Oh, you can pick, I just want to pick the artist and where you sing it," JC replied immediately, still grinning and trying hard to look innocent.

Chris and Lance exchanged a grin, wondering what JC had in mind and thinking it had to be pretty good to make him grin like that.

Justin just snorted, not fooled for a second by JC’s innocent look. "Who? And where?"

"‘Where’ is the next club we go to that does karaoke. ‘Who’ is for me to know and you to find out after you’re on stage and it’s too late for you to try and convince me not to make you do it." JC grinned and picked up his third slice of pizza to take a bite as Lance and Chris chuckled, pretending he didn’t see the sidelong look Justin was giving him.

Justin pursed his lips slightly as he watched JC chew for a moment and was about to speak when Joanna walked around the corner of the house carrying a box, Michelle right at her heels with a folder of papers and a pen.

"Hey guys," Joanna said with a grin. "Sorry we took so long! We had to stop and get gas, and then the guard at the gate wouldn’t let us in until Scotty got there to identify us."

Michelle nodded, grinning. "Yeah, he said we looked too much like we might be fans."

Chris laughed. "Well, we know he’s never been to one of our concerts."

Joey nodded, grinning. "Yeah, there’s no glitter, not enough skin showing and no names written on their faces."

Joanna and Michelle laughed as Lance chuckled and said, "You can just drop that box anywhere, Jo. How are things going today? Any calls or anything?"

Joanna walked over to set the box down by the door. "A few but none that were urgent." She moved to stand so she could see all five of them as she went on, "Stacy called to say your cell isn’t working and you’re to call her when you get a chance, but it wasn’t urgent, she said she just wants to thank you for that mini van you got for her when her little car died. JC, Tyler called to say he had lost your number again, and the Armani people sent you another suit hoping you’d wear it." Joanna grinned and added, "It’s a really nice dove grey with pink pinstripes, I think you’ll like it." The guys laughed and then Joanna went on, "Justin, Trace wanted me to tell you that he borrowed your ‘little green putt-putt’ so if anyone noticed it was gone you’d know where it was, and Britney called and got the address here and then said for you to expect something special tomorrow. Oh, and Joey, Antonia called and said to let her know if the custom piece was okay whatever that means."

Michelle grinned at Joanna and said, "You forgot Mrs. Kohl, I told you she called this morning." Charlie gave Mike a worried look as Michelle went on, "She didn’t leave a message, just said for Charlie to call her." Michelle saw Charlie’s face then and added, "She didn’t sound upset and said there was no hurry or I would have called you right then."

Charlie gave Michelle a slightly weak smile. "Don’t worry about it, I’ve got a pretty good idea why she called. I sort of outed myself to the doctor the other morning, and somebody has surely told her by now."

Lance gave Charlie a concerned look. "Anything we can do to help?"

Charlie shook his head. "Not really, I’ll have to talk to her myself." Mike elbowed Charlie then and he amended, " _We_ have to talk to her." Mike smiled at him, and then Charlie looked back at Lance and added, "I was going to ask if you minded us going to see her this evening. Mom needs to know that I love Mike and I’m not going to try and hide it from her or anyone else anymore."

Mike reached for Charlie’s hand to give it a squeeze as he murmured, "I love you too, Char."

Lance watched Charlie give Mike a quick smile as he said, "Go right ahead, this is your week off and after Sunday it’ll be a while until you can just drive across town to go see her."

Charlie smiled gratefully at Lance as he let go of Mike’s hand and stood up. "Thanks. While we’re out we ought to go by and see Kelsey too and make sure she’s ready for tomorrow night, but we shouldn’t be out too late. We’ll stop and call before we head back so if you need anything we can pick it up while we’re out, okay?"

"Great!" Lance replied, "I’d really appreciate it if you could pick up some coffee and popcorn, otherwise I think we’re set."

Joey had a thought then and stood up and headed inside to find his cell phone.

Mike stood up too and Charlie grinned at Lance, nodding as he said, "We can handle that boss, no problem. See y’all later." Charlie and Mike waved at them all and headed inside after Joey.

Lance watched Mike and Charlie disappear into the house and then looked back over at Joanna and Michelle as he asked, "Are those the papers I’m supposed to sign?"

Michelle stepped forward to offer Lance the folder and pen as Joanna nodded and said, "Yeah boss, that’s all of them."

Lance took the slim folder and then pen from Michelle, giving her a quick grin. "Thanks." He flipped the folder open and began scanning pages and signing them as he asked, "Anything else going on we need to know about, Joanna?"

Joanna shook her head, watching Lance make short work of the papers. "Not that I know of, boss. I checked in with the hotel on the way here and there weren’t any other calls while we were gone today."

"That’s good," Lance replied, his eyes scanning over a contract, and then he signed it and looked up. "How did things go with Melinda this morning?"

Joanna shrugged. "She was gone when I got up, but she left a message with James. He was on duty when she left, and she asked him to tell everyone that she was sorry and wouldn’t say anything to anyone. James said she was really quiet and acting upset, and she left her cell and laptop on the desk I’ve been using with a note saying that she didn’t feel right taking them."

"Speaking of cells, did the ones I had you order for Mike and Charlie get here yet?" Lance asked, moving the contract he’d just signed so he could start on the sheet of paychecks below it.

Joanna nodded and gestured towards the box she’d put by the door. "They’re in there, boss, ready to go except they need programmed and the batteries need charged."

"That’s good, I’ll get them in the chargers as soon as I get a chance. I’d like them to have them as soon as possible," Lance replied, not bothering to look up. "I don’t like them not being able to call us whenever they need to."

Joey stepped outside just as Lance said that and he chuckled, patting Lance’s shoulder. "They’ve got a cell, babe, don’t worry about them."

Lance looked up in surprise and then grinned. "You gave them yours?"

Joey nodded and moved to sit back down across from Lance. "Yep. I hardly ever use it anyway, and I told everyone I was leaving my cell in my suitcase because I’m on vacation this week so I doubt anyone calls it."

Chris laughed. "Which would be why we haven’t seen it laying around, right Joe-bear?"

Joey grinned. "Yup. Only I fibbed a bit. It wasn’t in my suitcase, it was in my gym bag."

Lance chuckled and began signing again, moving the third page of checks only to find it was the last thing he had to do. He quickly straightened the papers and put them back in the folder, then looked up at Joanna and Michelle. "All done. Would you two like to have a seat? There’s plenty of pizza left."

Michelle looked like she might want to do that just so she could keep watching JC and Justin eating and talking softly to each other, but Joanna shook her head. "No thanks, we should get back and get these checks to the guys."

Lance offered her the folder with a smile. "Well, if you change your mind you two are welcome to come hang out here with us."

"Yeah," Chris added, grinning wickedly. "We’ve got a private beach and a huge-ass hot tub we don’t mind sharing, especially with a couple of pretty ladies."

Joanna grinned and Michelle giggled as Lance swatted Chris. "Chris! Behave yourself."

Chris looked offended. "I am behaving myself!"

Lance snorted. "No you aren’t!"

"Yes I am!" Chris insisted.

"Inviting girls to share the hot tub with us is not behaving, Chris," Lance reiterated, looking more amused than annoyed.

Chris stuck his tongue out at Lance and then looked at the girls. "Okay, so you can share the hot tub with me and Joe."

Lance looked a bit annoyed at that, and then suddenly smirked. "Okay. I’ll just go hang out with Josh and Jup. I’m sure we can think of a way to keep ourselves occupied, can’t we?"

Lance looked down the table at JC, who gave him a positively wicked grin as Justin smirked and said feelingly, "Oh yeah."

Chris’ eyes widened, then he looked over at Joanna and Michelle. "Y’all can still use the hot tub, if you want. I’ll be with them."

Joanna chuckled, shaking her head. "Have fun, guys. We really should be going."

Lance grinned at Joanna and stood to start consolidating partial boxes of pizza. "Bye. Have a good evening."

Joanna and Michelle turned to go then but hadn’t gotten out of sight yet when Lance called after them, "‘Chelle?"

Michelle turned back, looking a little surprised. "Yeah boss?"

"Make her take some real time off, would you please?" Lance asked. "I know she’s been working too hard."

Joey, Chris, and Justin laughed at that as JC said, "Like you’re one to talk!"

Joanna snorted and walked off as Michelle grinned at them. "I’ll make her take at least a day off, I promise." She waved and added, "Bye."

A chorus of ‘bye’s’ followed her around the corner of the house as Lance continued putting the pizza into boxes, thinking there would be plenty for later, and soon all five of them were headed down to the beach in the late afternoon sunlight, laughing and playing around.

 

 

 

Mike followed Charlie through the house to their room, not bothering to shut the door behind them as he walked over to lean against the dresser and watch Charlie change t-shirts. He knew Charlie was just stalling, the shirt he’d had on was fine, but he didn’t say anything as Charlie picked up the keys off the bedside table and then suddenly sat down.

"I don’t know if I can do this," Charlie said softly a moment later, looking down at the keys in his hand. "What if she can’t accept us?"

Mike walked over and knelt in front of him, resting his hands on Charlie’s knees and looking up at Charlie as he said quietly, "Don’t worry, baby. It’ll be okay."

Charlie just looked into Mike’s eyes for a long moment. "You really think so?"

Mike nodded, smiling as he lifted one hand to stroke Charlie’s cheek. "I’m sure. She couldn’t hurt you anymore than I could, she loves you too much to do that." Mike didn’t add that he had a feeling Melanie already knew, he was sure that it wouldn’t really reassure Charlie to know they hadn’t hidden how they felt as well as he thought they had.

Charlie suddenly slid off the bed and wrapped his arms around Mike, burying his face against Mike’s neck as he whispered softly, "I love you so much."

Mike held him close, stroking Charlie’s hair with one hand. "I love you too, Char, more than anyone or anything else in the world. It’s gonna be okay, I promise."

Charlie was silent then, just holding on as Mike stroked his hair.

Joey paused at their open door then, looking worried until Mike gave him a quick smile and asked, "What’d you need, Joe?"

Charlie pulled away from Mike and stood quickly, pulling Mike to his feet as Joey said, "I just wanted to give you my cell so you’d have one if you need anything."

Charlie gave Joey a surprised look. "We can stop and use a payphone, you don’t need to give us your cell."

Joey chuckled and moved into the room a bit further to offer them the dark green cell phone he was holding. "I know that I don’t have to, take it anyway. We’ll all feel better knowing you’ve got one, and this way we can call you if we need something."

Charlie looked like he was going to argue again but Mike walked over to take the cell, smiling. "Thanks, Joey."

Joey grinned. "No problem. Joanna’s cell is memory one, Lance’s is two but it’s off, Chris’ three, JC’s four and five is Justin. Lance has Chris’ cell in his pocket, so it’s the best bet to call if you need anything tonight." Joey turned to go, then paused in the doorway and looked back to say, "Good luck with your mom, Charlie."

"Thanks," Charlie replied, and then Joey waved and walked out, leaving them alone. Charlie looked at Mike for a long moment before he started walking towards the door, grabbing Mike’s hand to pull him along behind him. "C’mon, love, the quicker we get back here the happier I’ll be."

Mike chuckled and stuck the cell in the front pocket of his jeans as he let Charlie tow him out of their room and down the hall.

 

 

 

Mike parked their Tracker in the driveway behind Melanie’s car half an hour later and then turned to look at Charlie, not at all surprised to see him chewing his lower lip and looking uncertain. "Charlie, it’ll be okay," Mike said softly, reaching across to take Charlie’s hand. "I’ll be right here with you."

Charlie turned his head to look at Mike and gave his hand a squeeze, smiling slightly. "Thanks, love. Let’s go get it over with."

Mike nodded and gave Charlie’s hand another squeeze before letting go to unbuckle his seatbelt and get out, walking around the car and then following Charlie to the front door. Charlie opened the door and stepped inside with Mike right behind him, looking around as he called, "Mom?"

Melanie stepped out to the kitchen, giving him a bright smile. "Hi! I didn’t expect you two tonight. Did you realize you forgot something?"

"No, I needed to talk to you," Charlie replied, looking serious and a little worried.

Melanie looked at him a moment, her smile fading slightly, and then she started towards her favorite chair in the living room. "Whatever it is, looking at your face I can tell it’s not good. Come sit down and tell me all about it."

Mike and Charlie went to sit on the couch facing her, then Charlie said, "I don’t really know how to say it." Charlie looked down at the floor between his knees, worrying at his lower lip with his teeth.

After only a moment, Melanie looked at Mike and asked, "Do you know what has him so upset, Michael?"

Mike nodded. "But it’s not my place to tell you, ma’am. Just give him a minute, please."

Charlie looked at his mother, then turned his head to look at Mike, searching his eyes for something before he finally reached to take Mike’s hand and smiled at him. Charlie looked back over at his mother then and said quietly, "I’m gay."

Melanie laughed, relieved. "Is that all?"

Mike grinned as Charlie looked a little confused and told his mother, "And I’m in love with Mike."

Melanie nodded, smiling. "Yes, and he loves you too, sweetheart. Was that so hard to say?"

Charlie just stared at her, completely at a loss for words as Mike grinned at Melanie. "He’s been dreading that for _years_."

Melanie’s eyebrows went up then. "Just how many years are we talking about here, Michael?" she asked, looking more surprised than upset.

Mike had the grace to look a bit sheepish. “Um. Almost four."

"You’re kidding me, right?" Melanie said, just a bit unhappy because she had thought she knew Charlie better than that. She’d begun to suspect they were more than friends well over two years ago, and been quite sure of it for about a year – walking in on them asleep together one Saturday afternoon had made it obvious – and she had accepted it. All the reasons they shouldn’t love each other didn’t really matter in the face of the simple fact that they did.

Charlie shook his head, thinking this was when his mom would blow up as Mike said quietly, "No ma’am."

Melanie looked at them both for a long moment then before she asked, "Charlie, why did it take you so long to tell me?"

Charlie bit his lip. "I didn’t think you would approve."

"Why were you with him, then?" Melanie asked, wondering what his answer would be and not quite sure why she had asked since she knew the answer, or thought she did.

Charlie met his mother’s gaze without flinching. "I’ve always loved him, Mom. When he told me he felt the same way, I wasn’t about to lie to him."

"You should have told me as soon as you knew, Charles," Melanie said, "I never would have left you two alo—"

"Mom," Charlie interrupted, "that’s exactly why I didn’t tell you. The only time we’ve _ever_ had to be together and be free to be completely ourselves was when we were here alone. I thought if I told you, you wouldn’t let Mike come over and probably would even tell me not to see him anymore, and I couldn’t do that to either of us. He’s my best friend and the love of my life and I won’t live without him."

Mike squeezed Charlie’s hand. "You won’t ever have to, baby. Nobody could keep me away from you."

Charlie looked at Mike and gave him a sweet little smile. "I know."

Melanie watched them smile at each other for a long moment, remembering Charlie’s dad, Eddie, and how much she had loved him. "I can’t say I approve of you lying to me, Charlie, but I guess I _can_ see why you didn’t tell me. You’re right, I would have said for Mike not to hang around when I wasn’t home – at fourteen you were both _much_ too young to be having sex – but I wouldn’t have forbidden you to see him completely. I know you two can’t live without each other."

Melanie didn’t add that she had been in trouble over and over as a teen because she and Eddie had been a bit too affectionate in public. Her mother had insisted that Melanie and Eddie stay home most evenings after she found out they were having sex, making them hang out with the family where she could watch them, but after only a few weeks she had given up and allowed Eddie in Melanie’s bedroom with the stipulation the door had to stay open. Eddie had been in her room quite a few times before that, but Melanie still didn’t think he mother knew about it. There were benefits to having the only bedroom on the ground floor of a two story house.

"We waited for over a year," Charlie said softly then, a bit disappointed his mother immediately assumed they’d had sex right from the beginning.

Melanie’s eyes widened in surprise. "Why? Did you doubt how you felt or something?"

"Of course not," Charlie said, "I know Michael loves me. I just thought we should wait."

Melanie looked at Mike. "And you didn’t mind?"

Mike’s eyebrows rose. "If you love somebody, you’ll wait until they’re ready."

Charlie gave Mike a sudden smile. "Which was long before that first year was over, but we’d already made that stupid promise by then."

Mike grinned at Charlie. "I know, Char, but you're well worth the wait."

Charlie grinned and squeezed Mike’s hand as Melanie frowned slightly and said, "If you’ve been having sex since you were fifteen, I hope you’ve been careful at least." She was quite glad that she didn’t have to worry about either of them getting pregnant like her parents had worried about her right up until the day she got married. Melanie had been pretty wild as a teenager, a tomboy who was prone to staying out too late or sneaking out even though Eddie had tried hard to keep her from getting into too much trouble. Eddie had definitely been the mature one in their relationship, and Charlie was a lot like his father in that respect. He thought of the consequences before he did most things instead of just going with his heart and jumping in with both feet like Melanie often did.

Charlie looked at his mother in surprise as Mike said, "There’s no reason to be."

Melanie frowned even more at that and asked incredulously, "Charlie’s health isn’t reason enough for you to be careful?!"

Mike frowned too then. "You know Charlie means more to me than anyone or anything in the world, and I’d _never_ risk his health. We don’t have to worry because I’ve never been with anyone else and neither has he."

Melanie’s eyes widened. "What about Kelsey?" She’d known that Mike and Charlie were more than friends, but she had truly thought the boys were fooling around with their girlfriends too, or at least that Mike was. Mike and Kelsey had always seemed so close, and Melanie was quite sure the girl was completely gone on him.

"She’s our best friend," Mike answered, still frowning slightly.

"And Amy?" Melanie asked, looking at Charlie and thinking of the girl he’d dated several times a week until she moved away a few months into Charlie’s senior year. Melanie had held onto the slim hope that Charlie would love Amy enough to stop messing around with Mike right up until the girl moved, even though she knew deep down that it wasn’t going to happen. Charlie loved Mike more than anyone, even more than he loved his own mother she’d sometimes thought, and she knew that nobody could change that.

"She’s a girl," Charlie said with a shrug, as if that explained it all.

Melanie’s eyebrows went up. "You don’t like girls at all?"

Charlie shook his head and then said patiently, "Mom, I’m really and completely gay. I don’t look at girls like that any more than you do."

Melanie looked at Mike questioningly.

Mike smiled at her. "I don’t want anyone but Charlie."

Charlie laughed suddenly at that and let go of Mike’s hand to shove him lightly. "Liar!"

Mike looked surprised, then grinned at Charlie. "Okay, Char, so there’s one guy besides you who could make me look twice, but we both know all I’ll ever do is _look_ at him."

Charlie blushed, easily catching the strong hint Mike would be doing more to him, and looked down at the coffee table while Melanie and Mike watched him with almost identical grins. Melanie thought the way Charlie was acting was much too cute. She never would have guessed her son would be a prude. He definitely didn’t get that from her or from his father, but he did remind her pretty strongly of her sister, who wouldn’t even let her husband kiss her in public until they got married.

Melanie watched the way Mike was watching Charlie a for almost a minute before she asked, "Who?"

Mike looked at Melanie. "JC. We’d have to be dead not to at least _notice_ him, I think."

Charlie didn’t look up as he wryly added, "Or straight."

Melanie looked at Charlie for a long moment. "Do your employers know you’re gay?"

"Yes," Charlie answered simply, finally looking up and meeting his mother’s gaze gain. "We told them before they hired us."

"And they don’t care?" Melanie asked, surprised that they had told the group before they were hired and wondering why. Charlie had tried so hard to hide it for so long she found it hard to believe he would just casually tell five men he didn’t really know that he was gay.

"No ma’am, they actually kind of like it," Mike replied immediately. "They’ve had a problem with their assistants leaving to get married or because they got pregnant or something, and we won’t be doing that."

Melanie nodded after a moment’s thought. "I can see how that could be a good thing at that, especially in their line of work. Charlie, can I assume from the fact you told Doc you’re gay that you’ve decided to – what do they call it – ‘come out’? You _do_ realize it’s all over town, right?"

Charlie nodded. "I knew Doc and his nurses would start passing it around immediately." Charlie looked sheepish as he added, "I didn’t really mean to out us like that, Mom, but he sort of made me."

Melanie gave him a wry look. "Do I want to know how? Or why?"

Charlie blushed. "Doc was giving me a safe sex lecture, going on and on about all sorts of stuff I don’t remotely want or need to know about girls, and I finally got fed up and told him I wasn’t going to be getting my boyfriend pregnant anytime soon."

Melanie laughed. "Charlie, you didn’t."

Charlie nodded, blushing even redder. "He just wouldn’t drop it and I couldn’t stand to sit there and listen to him go on about it any more."

Melanie just chuckled and shook her head, quite sure a safe sex lecture from Doc – who had a reputation for being quite graphic with teens in an attempt to get them listen – had embarrassed Charlie beyond belief. "What in the world did you do to make him lecture you?"

Charlie looked pointedly at Mike. " _I_ didn’t do anything."

"C’mon Char," Mike said with a little grin, "I said I was sorry."

Charlie snorted. "But you’ve still given me at least one more since then! I don’t even want to think about how many hickeys I might have that I haven’t found yet!"

Melanie tried hard not to laugh at that but only managed to say, "Oh my," before she dissolved into giggles.

Mike grinned at Charlie, feeling vindicated. "See? Even your mother thinks it’s funny."

Charlie snorted again. "You just remember, turnabout’s fair play."

Mike’s grin widened and turned a little wicked. "Anytime, Char."

Melanie stifled her giggles after a minute and asked, "So why did you decide to come tell me tonight?"

Charlie looked a little confused. "Isn’t that why you called to talk to me? I was sure that you’d talked to Doc."

Melanie laughed. "No, Charlie, I was cleaning up your room – you left it in an awful mess you know, and left your stereo on too – and I found your bank book in the floor by your desk. You need to take it with you."

Mike chuckled at that but Charlie ignored him as he said, "Thanks, Mom, I thought we had it. Mike was supposed to have packed it."

Charlie gave Mike another pointed look then, drawing an unrepentant grin from the tall blond as Mike shrugged and said, "I tossed it in your bag. You must have knocked it out again when you decided not to take those sweaters."

Charlie looked surprised, then sheepish. "Y’know, I might have. My bag was on my desk when I took them out."

Melanie chuckled. "Well, your bank book is back on your desk now, Charlie, along with some papers I left there for you that I think you might need."

Charlie nodded and stood up. "I’ll be right back then."

Melanie gave him a quick smile and watched him leave before she settled back into her chair more comfortably to look at Mike, her expression serious as she thought about what to say – or ask – next.

 

 


	63. Chapter 63

 

~~~~ 63 ~~~~

 

Melanie just looked at Mike for a long moment, watching as he scooted back on the couch to get more comfortable and turned slightly to face her before she finally said, "I’m trusting you to take good care of him, Michael."

Mike nodded, looking serious. "Yes ma’am, I know. I’ll keep him safe, I promise."

Melanie looked at Mike for another moment and then said, "Take care of yourself too, while you’re at it. I know you’re both adults now, but leaving home alone is still a big deal. You don’t know how tough it can be out there on your own, not really."

"We won’t be alone, ma’am, we’ll have each other and the guys," Mike said, giving her a smile as he laid one arm along the back couch. "They take their responsibility as our employers seriously and said they’re all going to keep an eye on us, especially JC. He’s had some hard times in the business and wants to make sure we never have to worry about things like that."

"I remember hearing about the trouble with their old manager," Melanie replied thoughtfully, then asked, "So you’re spending a lot of time with JC? What exactly will you two be doing for him?"

Mike nodded again. "Yes ma’am, we’ve been spending almost all of our time with the guys, getting to know them and helping out by doing dishes and stuff so they could enjoy their time off. Once we get on the road we’ll be spending our days on their bus helping them or on the girls’ bus working with them, or both. Charlie will be doing whatever needs doing – probably helping with fan mail mostly, they get tons of it – while I do the same and work on the website, trying to get it up to snuff after the lady they had working on it let it slide for the last six months or so. We’ll be busy but it’s a great job. Working with the guys is going to be a lot of fun."

Melanie smiled finally, nodding. "I’m sure it will be, and you’ll get to see a lot of the country too."

"We won’t really see much of it, Mom," Charlie said then, walking into the room carrying the backpack he’d used for school which now had a few things he had forgotten in it. "We’ll be on tour buses barreling down an interstate most of the time, and on too tight of a schedule to stop and sight-see. From what the guys have said they don’t get a lot of time to just enjoy themselves."

Charlie sat down on the couch by Mike, not even thinking about it as he sat down close to Mike’s side with one hand on Mike’s knee, and Mike moved his arm off the back of the couch to drape it across Charlie’s shoulders as he said, "We’re going to be working crazy hours, but the guys said we’ll get just as much time off as they do, so it’ll be okay."

Melanie watched how Charlie smiled at Mike and leaned against him, then she said, "The way you’re talking you’ll be working with all of the group. I thought you were hired by the lead singers, JC and Justin?"

"JC and Justin would be the first to tell you that there are no ‘leads’ in ‘Nsync ma’am," Mike answered, chuckling. "JC wanted to hire us, yeah, but Lance made the final decision and all five of them need help."

"Won’t that be confusing?" Melanie asked.

Charlie shook his head. "Not really. Lance is the boss, what he says goes for all of us."

Mike grinned, adding, "Including JC, Justin, Chris, and Joe. If Lance tells us to do something, they’re not gonna go against it unless it’s important, and then Lance would understand."

Melanie looked a little dubious. "Isn’t Lance the young blond one with spiky hair?"

"Yeah, he is," Charlie said, nodding.

"Bottle blond," Mike corrected. "His hair is really red, and lighter than yours."

Charlie looked surprised as he turned his head to look at Mike. "How do you know that?"

Mike grinned. "You don’t wanna know, Char."

Charlie rolled his eyes and said patiently, "Yes I do, Mikey, or I wouldn’t have asked."

Mike shrugged, still grinning. "Okay. You may not remember because you were mostly asleep, but when they were in the hot tub last night, Joanna called and I had to take them the phone."

Charlie thought about that for barely a second before he blushed. "I should have known it was something like that, really."

Mike chuckled. "I told you that you didn’t wanna know, baby."

"They know you’re gay and underage, and they were skinny-dipping around you anyway?" Melanie asked with raised eyebrows, looking like she wasn’t quite sure if she should get upset or not. Mike and Charlie were more men than boys now and quite capable of making their own choices, she knew that, but she still wasn’t sure she really liked the idea of grown men being naked around either of them. Of course, five men naked together in a hot tub was a puzzle in itself but Melanie wasn’t going to ask about that, she was sure that Mike and Charlie probably weren’t supposed to answer.

Mike looked surprised and then laughed. "He wasn’t, ma’am, his shorts were just riding low. Most of the others were skinny dipping, I’ll admit, but Lance isn’t quite as shameless as they are."

Melanie didn’t look much happier and was about to ask something else but Charlie beat her to it, elbowing Mike as he said, "I want to know what you were doing ogling the boss."

"I wasn’t ogling!" Mike answered indignantly. "I just ... noticed, kind of, ‘cause he was right there and I was talking to him. From the clothes laying around I know JC, Justin, and Joe were skinny dipping, and knowing Chris I’d bet he was too so I couldn’t very well look too closely at any of them. Besides, you know Lance’s not my type, babe." Mike gave Charlie a little grin and added, "He’s too tall and all chunky, and his name’s not Charlie."

Charlie looked slightly mollified. "In that case I probably would have looked at him, too."

Mike grinned and ruffled Charlie’s hair. "Your face would have been redder than your hair, Char, we both know it, and you wouldn’t have looked at any of them unless you had to. You won’t even look at JC when he’s got his shirt off unless he’s talking to you."

Charlie blushed as Melanie asked, "They don’t mind you being around them and looking at them even though they know you’re gay?"

"No ma’am," Mike said, looking surprised. "It’s not like we stare at them or something, we just see them hanging around together." Mike shrugged. "We’ve seen some skin but nothing embarrassing, and they aren’t going to be running around naked or anything." Charlie snorted softly, and then Mike grinned and added, "Well, Chris is crazy enough to streak just because he’s bored, but we haven’t seen him do it yet."

Melanie looked surprised. "Isn’t Chris the oldest?"

Charlie laughed. "Only in years."

Mike grinned nodding. "Josh said the other night that Chris is thirty going on twelve."

"That is bad," Melanie said with a laugh, then asked, "Who’s Josh?"

Charlie gave Mike a dirty look and Mike looked sheepish as he said, "JC. The others call him Josh so much that I slip up and do it too, sometimes."

"And he hasn’t said you can yet," Charlie said, half-scolding. "You need to remember to pay attention, he’s too nice to tell you not to."

"You’re kidding, right?" Melanie asked, surprised.

Charlie looked back over his mother and shook his head. "No, Mom, JC’s just about the sweetest person you’ll ever meet. He wouldn’t fuss about something like that even if he hated it." Charlie turned back to Mike and added firmly, "Which is why you’re not going to do it."

"I try not to, Char, really I do, but they call him Josh so much it’s hard not to do the same. I wouldn’t upset him for the world, he’s had a hard enough time without me adding to it," Mike said, looking contrite.

Melanie looked thoughtful, wondering what had happened to JC, while Charlie sighed and rubbed Mike’s leg soothingly. "I know you wouldn’t, just remember to keep trying."

"I will," Mike replied quietly, earning a quick smile from Charlie.

"How does the group feel about you two being affectionate around them?" Melanie asked, completely changing the subject.

She had noticed that Mike and Charlie were acting much closer than they had before – well, except the few times she had walked in on them cuddling on the couch – and she had caught the occasional endearment too and wondered how five straight men would react to seeing that. Most would react badly, she knew, but the group had known they were gay when they hired the boys, so maybe they were okay with it. Even though they had only been gone a few days, Mike and Charlie were much more affectionate now, at least in front of her, so something had changed and she doubted it was just that they knew she knew.

Charlie looked surprised and then seemed to realize he was still absently stroking Mike’s thigh and blushed, looking down and moving his hand to rest on his own leg.

"They don’t mind at all ma’am, they encourage us in fact." Mike looked at Charlie, smiling as he added, "JC thinks it’s really sweet that Char is so shy."

Melanie smiled at that, pleasantly surprised. She wanted the boys to be happy with their new job and knew that they’d enjoy it more if they could be completely open about their relationship, so knowing that the group encouraged them was great. Charlie’s blush got even worse then as Melanie chuckled softly and said, "That’s great, you shouldn’t have to hide from them. And stop calling me ma’am!"

Charlie looked up at his mother in surprise as Mike asked, "What would you like me to call you?"

Melanie’s smile widened. "Mom would be nice."

Mike just stared at her as Charlie asked suddenly, "Really?"

Melanie nodded. "Yes, really." She looked into Mike’s still-surprised eyes as she added, "You’ve been a part of our family for years, Michael, and I really would rather you just call me Mom. Unless you don’t want to..." Melanie trailed off then, suddenly unsure of what he’d say. Telling him to call her mom had seemed like such a good idea, but he was more shocked than she had expected.

Mike looked completely floored for a moment longer and then said quietly, "My parents disowned me when I admitted that I love Charlie, but it didn’t really hurt like it should have. You’re the closest thing I’ve had to a mother for years. I’d be honored to call you Mom."

Melanie smiled. "Then call me Mom and consider this your home." Her smile suddenly widened and she added, "You’ve always been here most of the time anyway, Michael, might as well make it official."

Mike chuckled, nodding as Charlie said, "Thanks, Mom."

Melanie looked surprised. "What for, Charlie?"

"For accepting us," Charlie answered, his expression serious. "For not telling us we’re ruining our lives or trying to convince us we’d be better off apart."

"Charlie, I’ve seen you without Mike around, I know you need him just as much as he needs you," Melanie replied with a wry smile. "I hoped you’d decide that you liked Amy enough to make a life with her, I won’t deny that, but deep down I knew it would never happen. I loved your father so much that I broke a lot of rules to be with him, and knowing how much you love Mike I can’t really fault you for doing the same, especially since I know Mike would do anything to make you happy. The first time someone hinted to me that you two were together I decided that I didn’t want anyone driving you apart, and I’m not about to change my mind now."

"Someone knew?!" Charlie asked, wide-eyed.

Melanie blinked, surprised. "Mike’s family knew, or at least had suspicions, I thought you knew that. Jerry made it plain he thought you two were fooling around years ago and that he didn’t approve."

"Y—Years?" Charlie asked softly, barely able to speak.

Melanie nodded. "Yes Charlie, years. He told me that he thought you two were sleeping together almost three years ago, and blamed it on me for allowing it in my house." Melanie looked wry as she went on, "I didn’t believe him – I was sure you would have told me if you and Mike were more than friends – but I decided then that what anyone else thought didn’t matter to me. You need Mike too much for me to stand back and let anyone drive you apart, even his family."

Mike spoke up then, saying quietly, "I need Charlie at least as much. He’s everything to me."

Melanie gave Mike a quick smile. "I know, Michael, that’s a big part of why it was so easy to accept it when I found out for sure that you were together."

"How did you find out?" Mike asked then, wondering how many other people knew about them and why nobody had said anything to them. If they had known Melanie approved, they could have been spending a lot more time together and Charlie wouldn’t have had to worry she would find out.

"Well," Melanie replied, "I’d wondered for a long time by then, but seeing you in bed together about a year ago made it pretty obvious."

Charlie’s eyes widened. "Please tell me you’re kidding."

Melanie chuckled slightly, shaking her head. "No, I got off work early one Saturday just before school got out last year, and when I got home your car was here so I went to ask if you wanted me to order pizza for dinner. Your door wasn’t quite shut so I pushed it open and that was when I saw you two, curled up together under that dark blue comforter you love so much with clothes scattered everywhere. I watched you for a few minutes then, and I remember thinking how comfortable you looked together."

Melanie suddenly chuckled slightly and then added, "It was so crazy then, but I remember that my first thought when I saw you two together was that you needed a bigger bed." She grinned at them both. "I left and went for a drive to think about what I should do, but there really wasn’t much to think about. Knowing you really _were_ sleeping together didn’t change the fact that I know you love and need each other. I stopped at a gas station to call and tell you I’d be home early, and I didn’t come home without calling first after that."

Charlie’s face flamed as Mike chuckled and said, "If I had a dollar for every time I fell off that bed, I wouldn’t have to work for a living."

Charlie gasped and turned to face Mike as he swatted Mike’s chest, his face going even redder. "Michael!"

Mike snorted. "Don’t ‘Michael’ me, it’s just the truth. You could say the same, babe, you wound up in the floor even more often than me."

Melanie covered her mouth with one hand, trying hard not to laugh at the expression on Charlie’s face as Charlie said, "Maybe so, but you don’t have to tell _Mom_ that!"

Mike arched an eyebrow at Charlie. "Why not? She knows and she’s not mad at us, so there’s no reason to hide anything from her anymore."

Charlie made a little annoyed noise and abruptly turned to face forward, not looking at Mike or his mother as he folded his arms across his chest and leaned back against the couch. "You’ve _already_ been hanging around Justin way too much. I knew he was a bad influence on you."

Mike chuckled softly and gave Charlie’s shoulders a squeeze. "Justin’s not that bad, Char."

Charlie snorted and gave Mike a dirty look. "No, he’s just completely shameless! And has absolutely no concept of what sorts of things you just don’t discuss or do unless you’re behind closed doors."

"The door is closed," Melanie couldn’t resist pointing out with a grin, earning her a shocked look from Charlie.

"Mother! Don’t encourage him, please!" Charlie exclaimed. "He’s bad enough now!"

Mike grinned at Melanie and then turned slightly to face Charlie as he pulled him closer, ignoring the fact Charlie was resisting just a bit. "C’mon, babe, don’t be that way. You know I love you too much to want to hide it now that I don’t have to."

Charlie pursed his lips slightly, giving Mike a dirty look. "You’re just having fun being shameless."

Mike made a face and corrected, "No, I just like being able to finally show how much I love you anytime I feel like it instead of pretending you’re just my best friend."

"We already had this discussion at least twice, y’know," Charlie said after a long moment, smiling suddenly. "And last time you won because you’ve got a gorgeous smile."

Melanie giggled at that as Mike let out a short laugh, surprised. "What’s that supposed to mean?!"

"That I like to see you smile." Charlie’s own smile widened into a grin and he lifted one hand to pat Mike’s cheek. "And you always smile when you think you won."

Melanie giggled again as Charlie let his hand drop back to his own lap but Mike frowned slightly and said, "That’s not a good enough reason to agree with me, Char."

Charlie’s eyebrows went up. "What is then?"

"Well, _really_ agreeing with me would be good," Mike said with a soft snort. "I don’t want you to just _humor me_."

Charlie chuckled. "Love, I don’t humor you often, and you know quite well I won’t do anything I don’t want to, even for you."

Mike looked slightly mollified at that. "Alright. I guess." Mike looked at Charlie for a second, then suddenly grinned and added, "But that just means I get to do the same thing."

Charlie looked surprised. "Hey now, wait a minute..."

Melanie laughed. "He’s got a point, Charlie."

"Mom! Whose side are you on?!" Charlie exclaimed.

Melanie grinned. "Nobody’s, which is why you should listen to me. Your father and I had a similar argument when we were even younger than you are, and his mother told us, ‘What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.’ She was right, too. If you intend to let him win just to see him smile, you can’t get mad if he does the same thing."

Charlie looked put upon at that but Mike grinned at Melanie and said, "Thank you."

"No problem," Melanie replied with a grin of her own.

Charlie started to say something then, managing only to get out, "But—" before there was a knock on the front door and then it opened and Melanie’s long-time boyfriend Lloyd walked in, looking around the room before he started towards Melanie.

Melanie glanced at her watch and then smiled at Lloyd. "You’re early."

Lloyd leaned over her as he said, "I didn’t think you’d mind, Melly." He grinned at her and then kissed her, lingering a long moment before he pulled away and sat down on the arm of her chair.

"I don’t," Melanie replied with a grin, patting his thigh.

Lloyd winked at her and then looked at Charlie and Mike, taking in how close they were sitting and how Mike’s arm was draped around Charlie, raising an eyebrow. "Hi guys. Did I miss something?"

Charlie blushed and had no idea how to answer that, but he didn’t have to because Mike grinned at Lloyd and said, "Nothing much."

Lloyd returned the grin, his eyes twinkling with amusement. "If I didn’t miss anything, then why is Charlie’s face almost as red as his hair?"

Charlie blushed even more as Mike chuckled and said, "He’s shy, you get used to it after a while. Besides, he looks really good in red."

Charlie turned towards Mike a bit and swatted at his chest, his eyes going wide as he said indignantly, "Michael!"

Mike gave him a patently false innocent look. "Yeah, babe?"

Charlie opened his mouth to say something scathing, then shut it again and gave Mike a firm, level look before he turned to face forward again, carefully not looking at his mother or Lloyd. "You’re lucky I love you so much."

Melanie and Lloyd both grinned at that as Mike smiled, leaning closer to Charlie’s ear as he replied softly, "I know, I’m the luckiest guy alive."

Charlie turned his head to look at Mike and then, smiling slightly despite himself. "Luckier than Justin?"

"Oh hell yeah, baby," Mike replied immediately, his smile widening a bit. "I wouldn’t trade you for anyone or anything in the world." Charlie’s smile widened at that and he didn’t try to dodge when Mike leaned even closer and kissed him, instead lifting his hand to rest it on Mike’s chest as Mike deepened the kiss slightly.

Lloyd looked down at Melanie when he realized Mike was really going to kiss Charlie to see what her reaction would be. He knew she knew about them, but knowing and seeing were two different things in his opinion, and he was surprised to find her watching him for the same reason. Lloyd smiled at her and winked, earning a quick grin from her before he looked back over at Mike and Charlie and waited for them to pull apart to say, "Now I know I missed something guys. You gonna try and tell me I didn’t just see you two kissing?"

Charlie turned bright red again and looked at Mike, making it obvious that he wasn’t about to answer Lloyd’s question. Mike gave Charlie a reassuring smile and then looked over at Lloyd as he replied, "You don’t seem surprised, Lloyd."

Lloyd looked surprised then though, and it was a moment before he said slowly, "Well, I’m not, really. A little surprised you chose now, maybe."

Mike grinned. "It’s as good a time as any. I’m tired of hiding how I feel and watching what I say and do all the time."

"So it was your idea?" Lloyd asked.

Mike shook his head. "No, I would never have asked Charlie to come out for me. If he wanted to stay in the closet for the rest of our lives, I would have done it."

Melanie looked surprised at that as Charlie looked at Mike with a fond smile and said softly, "You’re entirely too good to me, love."

Mike returned the smile and squeezed Charlie’s shoulders again. "Not possible, babe."

Melanie and Lloyd watched them smile at each other for a moment before Lloyd finally asked, "Why now, Charlie?"

Charlie looked at Lloyd and his mother. "Well, we told the guys we were gay when they hired us. They’ve treated us more like friends than employees from the very first night, and they were really supportive when we asked if they cared if we stopped hiding our relationship. JC in particular made sure we knew that they wouldn’t let anybody would bother us if we wanted to come out, and that some of the other people on the crew are gay and out and, well, I’m tired of hiding too." Charlie shrugged slightly and then added, "I want to be able to be with Michael without worrying who might see us, at home or at the mall or wherever."

Lloyd nodded, smiling. "I’m surprised you two were able to hide it for so long. Three years, isn’t it?"

Mike and Charlie both just stared at him as Melanie looked up at Lloyd and asked incredulously, "You’ve known they were together for _three years_ and didn’t tell me?!"

Lloyd looked down at her, surprised. "Yeah, Melly, about that long. I thought you knew!"

"Not then!" Melanie replied. "How did you know?!"

"Why did you encourage them all the time if you didn’t know?" Lloyd asked instead of answering her.

"What do you mean, encourage them?" Melanie asked, confused.

Lloyd looked at her a moment and then laughed. "Woman, you’re something else." Melanie looked like she wanted to say something, unsure if she should be offended or not by that, but Lloyd went on without waiting for her to reply. "You were always telling Mike he could stay over, you lied to his parents for him more than once so he could be with Charlie, and you incessantly left them home alone. Am I the only one around here that thinks that was all a bit odd if you didn’t know they were together?"

Melanie spluttered, trying to speak, but Mike chuckled and spoke before she could. "I always did say Char has the coolest mom ever."

Melanie stared up at Lloyd another moment before she turned to look at Mike. "Thank you, Michael, I try. My mother drove me crazy when I was a teenager, making me tell her every single time I turned around and not allowing any of my friends to come around unless she was there, and I’ve tried hard not to do the same to you boys."

Charlie laughed softly. "You definitely weren’t like that, Mom."

Lloyd snorted. "Just the opposite maybe, leaving you two here alone all the time. You never did answer me though, Charlie. Was I right, have you been together three years?"

Charlie looked a bit uncertain. "That depends on what you mean by together."

Lloyd raised an eyebrow. "Having sex."

Charlie blushed but didn’t hesitate as he answered softly, "Three years in May."

"Are you sure it hasn’t been four years?" Melanie asked, remembering when Charlie was such a wreck and thinking that Mike pressuring him for sex would explain that.

Charlie looked surprised. "I’m sure, Mom. It’ll be three years on May 25th."

"His birthday?" Melanie asked, looking like she wasn’t sure if she should be upset or not.

Charlie blushed and nodded. "It was an easy date to remember, and was a little over a year after he realized he was in love with me."

"Is hearing that he loved you what made you realize you were in love with him too?" Lloyd asked, hoping Charlie would say no. He’d counseled a lot of girls who did things because their boyfriend said he loved them and then regretted it later, so it was almost a habit to ask even though he didn’t think Mike could do Charlie like that.

Charlie shook his head. "No, I’d known it for a long time by then, I was just waiting to see if he felt the same. Knowing him, I figured if he ever realized he felt the same he’d do something about it, and then we could go from there." Charlie smiled suddenly and looked at Mike as he added, "I was right, too."

Mike chuckled and amended, "Sort of. I realized why I kissed you after I did it, baby, not before."

Melanie and Lloyd both laughed at that, then after a moment Melanie asked, "Was that what upset you near the end of eighth grade?" She remembered when Charlie went more than a little insane towards the end of eighth grade quite well. At the time she’d been sure he was having a nervous breakdown or on drugs or something.

Charlie nodded. "Yeah, that first week we were together was really hard." He was so scared then that he had acted more than a little crazy and he knew it, but his memories of that week weren’t very clear, probably because he didn’t like to think about it.

"Why?" Melanie asked, looking concerned. "You were a wreck that week, but I’ve always thought it was just because Mike wasn’t there. Were you apart because you were upset, or upset because you were apart?"

"Neither, or maybe both," Charlie answered quietly after a thinking a minute or so. "Every time I saw Mike all I could think about was that he loved me, and I was sure I’d give us away so I avoided him even though all I wanted was to be with him. I was fighting myself more than anything else."

"And all because I was too stupid to figure out how I was upsetting you," Mike added, frowning.

Melanie looked upset at that but Charlie ignored her frown, looking at Mike. "Mike, that’s not true, you’re not stupid! It’s not your fault I wouldn’t tell you what was wrong."

Mike gave him an odd look. "You shouldn’t have _had_ to tell me, baby, that’s my whole point. You were so scared you were making yourself _sick_ , and I just kept making it worse because I was too dense to see what I was doing until Kelce spelled it out in little bitty words."

Chrlie snorted and was about to say something else when Melanie asked, "What exactly did you do, Michael?"

Mike shrugged slightly, looking over at Melanie as he replied simply, "I was stupid. I wanted to be sure Char knew how much I love him, but I wasn’t being as careful as I should be and he was sure I was going to get us caught. After Kelsey knocked some sense into me we had a long talk and decided that we’d just assume the only safe place to be together was here, when you weren’t home."

"Which is why you two stayed home so much that summer, isn’t it?" Melanie asked.

Charlie looked down at his knees again, nodding as Mike looked at Melanie and Lloyd and answered, "Yes ma’am. It was the only time we could be together, and after coming so close to losing Charlie I wanted to be with him as much as I could. We took things really slow though, and we made a promise to each other to wait."

"I’m glad you did," Melanie said with a wry smile. "All things considered, I have to admit I’m proud of how you two handled everything. I wish you had trusted me enough to tell me when you got together, but at that age I know I wouldn’t have trusted my mother with something like that either, so I can’t really blame you."

Lloyd shook his head slowly, smiling. "Mike’s right, you are the coolest mom ever."

Melanie blushed and changed the subject, asking the boys what they had been doing the last few days, and soon she and Lloyd were laughing as Mike and Charlie told them about how the group had acted at the little store they’d stopped at on the way to Pawley’s.

 

 


	64. Chapter 64

 

~~~~ 64 ~~~~

 

Lance followed the other three down towards the water, stopping well above the high tide line to pull off his t-shirt and drop it on the sand before he put Chris’ cell on top of it, hoping to keep both of them dry. He moved a few feet away and then sat down to watch JC, Justin, and Chris dodge back and forth chasing each other while Joey quietly snuck up on Chris, obviously intending to tackle him.

Lance laughed out loud when Joey caught Chris and lifted him off his feet despite Chris' struggling, then watched as JC and Justin moved in to grab Chris’ feet to help him carry Chris out into the water amidst Chris’ indignant yells. They carried him out well past knee deep before they tossed him into the surf and Chris came up spluttering and yelling, then he started for JC. Within a few minutes they were all laughing and hollering as they wrestled and splashed like kids, JC definitely having the advantage because of how at home he was in the water.

Lance pulled his knees up and folded his arms on top of them so he could rest his chin there, watching them play and occasionally chuckling at their antics while thinking about how they so seldom had time to just goof off together anymore. Their days were usually planned almost down to the minute and left very little time to do spontaneous things like run out on the beach and wrestle. The few times they did find themselves with a few moments of free time, Lance would almost invariably have something he had to get done, so he would miss out on whatever the others did together.

Lance smiled as he watched the other four begin a game of chicken and soon he was chuckling as JC and Chris wrestled with each other while Justin and Joey tried not to lose their balance. Lance laughed out loud a moment later as Justin lost his footing and stumbled into Joey, sending all four of them tumbling into the water in a tangle. Justin was the first to recover somehow even in the chest-deep water and immediately started splashing Chris, who ducked so that Justin hit JC and Joey instead, starting another all-out splashing war.

Lance was still watching them a few minutes later, laughing hard at the shocked look on Chris’ face when JC dunked him when he flinched suddenly, gasping at a sudden twinge in his chest before he took a careful, deep breath only for it to happen again. He moved to rest his forehead on his arms then, looking down at the sand between his legs for a moment before he closed his eyes, breathing carefully as he waited for the ache in his chest to pass. He didn’t even notice when the other four stopped making noise a few moments later, instead concentrating on calming down and wishing it wouldn’t be quite so obvious that there was something wrong if he walked inside now. Well, if he could walk. He wasn’t at all sure he could even stand just then.

"Baby, are you okay?" Chris asked softly a moment later, making Lance look up in surprise as Chris knelt and rested a hand on his back, looking worried while Joey, Justin, and JC gathered around.

Lance started to say, "I’m fi—" but Joey snorted, interrupting him.

"Lance, don’t lie to us," Joey said firmly. "You’re hurting, you know it as well as I do. Did you take your pill this morning?"

Lance bit his lip, then shook his head and admitted, "No."

"Babe, you—" Joey broke off with a sigh, wanting to say something about how Lance knew better but instead he asked, "Why not?"

"I didn’t think I’d need it," Lance said softly.

Joey looked at him with a little frown for a second, then stepped closer to Chris and said, "He’ll be fine, Critter. I know where he keeps his pills." He rubbed Chris’ back reassuringly as he added, "I’ll be right back."

Joey turned to start off towards the house at a trot as Chris ran his hand up and down Lance’s back, looking worriedly at Lance and not bothering to reply to Joey.

Lance sighed. "I’ll be okay, really, it was probably just a cramp or something."

Justin snorted in disbelief as he flopped down to sit cross-legged in the sand right in front of Lance but he held his peace, not wanting to upset Lance any further by arguing with him. A ‘cramp’ wouldn’t have Lance pale as a sheet and shaking, and they all knew it.

Lance lowered his forehead to rest on his arms again then and said quietly, "God, I hate being weak."

JC frowned and knelt next to Lance, lifting one hand to touch Lance’s right arm. "You’re not weak, sweetheart, you have a heart problem. There’s a big difference."

Lance tipped his head sideways to look at JC, trying not to think about how silent Chris was. "I know, but it still bugs me. I usually can do without the pills on days we don’t have a show. I don’t know why that had to change right now."

"I do," Chris said quietly, not elaborating as Lance turned his head to look at him in surprise.

"Why?" Lance asked after a moment.

"Because you’ve been doing too much," Chris replied immediately. "Even on days when we’re performing you get more rest than you have the last few days, and you don’t usually get near this much exercise either."

Lance looked confused. "But Chris, I haven’t been _doing_ anything."

Chris snorted and turned to sit down next to Lance, slipping an arm around him as he leaned sideways against Lance’s shoulder. "Yeah baby, you have. You’ve been doing me _and_ Joe. Having sex may be the best way that I can think of to spend our vacation, but it’s still exercise and you’ve been getting plenty."

Justin chuckled at that and Lance looked surprised, then blushed and hid his face in his arms as he mumbled, "I guess so."

Chris gave Lance a squeeze and kissed his temple as JC chuckled softly and patted Lance’s shoulder, saying, "You gotta pace yourself, sweetheart, and take your medicine. Yolanda wouldn’t have prescribed it for you if you didn’t need it."

Lance looked up again then and said sheepishly, "I know, but I’ve only been taking it on days when we have a show for a long time unless Joe and I were together at breakfast. He usually makes sure I take it if he’s around."

"You can’t do that anymore, baby," Chris said firmly. "Every day, okay? I don’t like seeing you hurting."

Lance nodded. "I will, I promise." He paused a moment, then added softly, "I’m sorry."

Chris looked surprised. "Sorry?! What for?"

Lance shifted to put one hand on Chris’ knee, trying to ignore the way his hand trembled. "For worrying you. I know how it upsets you when I get sick."

"Baby, no," Chris said, frowning as he took Lance’s hand in his. "I love you, of _course_ I’m going to worry about you. It’s not your fault."

Lance sighed, lacing his fingers with Chris’. "I know, but I still don’t like it."

Chris was still frowning slightly when Joey walked up a moment later. "Here, babe," he said quietly, offering Lance a half-empty can of Dr. Pepper. Lance gave him a slightly wan smile and sat up straighter as he took the can with his free hand, and was about to let go of Chris’ hand to take the pill from Joey’s other hand when Joey smiled and said, "Open up."

Lance gave him a slightly wry look and took a swig from the can before he opened his mouth to let Joey drop the pill in, swallowing it immediately and then following it with the rest of the can before he offered it back to Joey with a smile. "Thanks, Joe."

"No problem, babe," Joey said with a quick smile before he tossed the empty can over to land on Lance’s t-shirt and then sat down next to Justin, facing Chris and Lance. "How long has it been since you took your pill?" Joey asked then, looking serious.

Lance looked thoughtful, chewing at his lower lip a moment before he said, "Saturday, I think. I’m pretty sure I took one that morning, I always do before a show."

Chris frowned slightly as Joey shook his head and said, "I don’t think you did, we were in a hurry Saturday, remember? You usually take it at breakfast and I haven’t seen you take one since last Thursday."

"And I haven’t either," Chris added, his frown becoming more pronounced.

Lance thought about it for another moment, and then he said quietly, "Y’know, I think y’all are right, it has been about a week."

"You’re supposed to take it every day, babe," Joey said then, frowning. "That’s what the bottle says, and it also says your prescription should have run out a long time ago."

"I know." Lance sighed. "I just don’t like relying on it so I try not take it unless I have to."

Joey snorted. "You need to take it _every day_. What if we’d been out at a club or something and you needed one?"

"I have a couple pills in my wallet," Lance replied defensively, "and no matter where we go it’s either with me or in my bag."

"That’s not good enough." Joey reached out to brush Lance’s hair back off his forehead, then let his hand fall back to rest on his knee as he went on. "When this happened while we were shooting that damn movie, you promised me you’d take care of yourself. Taking your medicine is part of that."

Lance sighed, his shoulders slumping slightly as he looked down at the ground. "I know. I’m sorry."

"Don’t be sorry, babe," Joey replied, "just start doing it. You know we – and I mean all four of us – love you too much to want to see you hurting."

Lance looked up at Joey again and nodded. "I know, Joe, and I’ll try to remember."

Joey smiled. "I’ll help you."

Lance returned the smile and then rested his head on his arms again, willing the medicine to start working faster even though he knew that it didn’t do any good. The pain had passed but he still felt weak as a kitten and he was tired too because he hadn’t had enough sleep the night before. He really hadn’t been sleeping much for the last two weeks, first because he had a hard time getting used to sleeping alone again after the second bus broke down and then because he was with Chris and Joey. Sleeping with the two of them was something Lance never wanted to give up, but he couldn’t really call it very restful. Joey would sleep the whole night curled up around him so Lance never really had to worry about Joey waking him up, but Chris never slept more than four hours at a time, so besides staying up very late Lance hadn’t been sleeping very long at a time either.

They were all quiet for a little while, sitting close together in the sand and watching Lance as the light slowly faded until Joey finally broke the silence again. "Babe? You want to go inside and watch a movie or something?"

Lance though for only a moment before he lifted his head and nodded as replied sleepily, "Yeah darlin’, that sounds good." Lance slowly looked around at the others then and asked, "What’re y’all going to do?"

"A movie sounds good to me," JC replied immediately as Justin nodded, smiling.

"Yeah, baby," Chris agreed as he leaned sideways a bit and gave Lance another one-armed hug. "You know how I love to cuddle on the couch with you and Joe."

Lance chuckled softly and turned towards Chris, leaning sideways to give him a kiss. "I know."

Joey stood up then, wordlessly offering Lance a hand as the others stood up. Lance took the offered hand gratefully, letting Joey pull him to his feet and then swaying unsteadily as Joey stepped closer to wrap an arm around his waist with a little chuckle. "Hey babe, none of that. You’re not allowed to fall down until _after_ we get inside."

Lance gave Joey a rueful smile. "I’ll try not to, Joe."

Chris moved to Lance’s other side then, managing to smile as he slipped his arm around Lance, too. "We won’t let you." He looked past Lance at Joey, and then the three of them began to walk slowly towards the house.

JC and Justin exchanged a concerned look and then JC followed the others while Justin grabbed Lance’s t-shirt, the cell and the empty can and then trotted to catch up, falling into step next to JC. They both hated seeing Lance like this, and Justin was really beating himself up over the fact he had known Lance was having more trouble recently and hadn’t told Joey. Telling Chris was something he just wouldn’t do – Chris would have driven Lance crazy pestering him to slow down and just stressed him out more – but Joey had been taking care of Lance for a long time now and could have prevented this before it happened if he had known.

JC glanced at Justin a few times on the slow walk up the beach before he wrapped his left arm around Justin’s right and slowed him down even further, letting the other three go on ahead while Justin looked at him curiously. JC waited until the others made it inside before he started guiding Justin towards the door to their room as he said softly, "Baby, don’t you dare."

Justin’s eyebrows went up. "Don’t I dare what?"

"Blame yourself. I can see it in your eyes, baby, you think this is somehow your fault and it’s not," JC said firmly. "Lance is a grown man and can make his own choices. This time he made the wrong one. It is not your fault in any way, shape or form."

"But I knew he was feeling bad," Justin said softly, "and I didn’t tell anyone."

JC frowned slightly. "He told you?"

Justin shook his head. "No, we were talking with Mike and Charlie the other morning about Europe and the time Lance collapsed, and he said something about how he wished his heart problem had gone away. He admitted it had been giving him trouble then but asked the three of us not to tell Chris, and we said we wouldn’t if he’d take care of himself and slow down."

"Well, he kept half of his part of the bargain," JC said quietly, "but I’m glad you didn’t tell Chris. Chris didn’t take this very well."

Chris acting all quiet and calm almost invariably meant he was scared, and that was a rare thing that was always more than a little scary to the rest of them. JC had asked Chris about how he reacted to fear one time, back when they were fighting Lou for their name and all of them were scared but Chris was so calm and cool. JC hadn’t understood how Chris could be so calm when everything they had worked their asses off for was about to die, and Chris told him that being afraid was never as bad if you weren’t afraid of fear. That hadn’t made much sense to JC, so Chris had tried to explain by telling him that he figured fear was like a bully. Chris didn’t give in to bullies ever so he ignored fear as best he could, staying calm and even being mature. The more frightened Chris was, the calmer and quieter he would get.

Justin nodded. "I know. I wish we could help."

JC smiled softly and slung an arm around Justin’s shoulders. "Joe and Chris just holding Lance for a while will do him more good than anything else, don’t worry."

Justin wrapped his free arm around JC as he replied quietly, "I hope you’re right, Josh."

JC chuckled and reached to open the door. "Of course I’m right, I’m always right."

Justin grinned, trying not to laugh as he stepped through the door. "Sure, baby, you just keep telling yourself that."

JC snorted and moved away from Justin to go into the bathroom then, and Justin tossed Lance’s t-shirt and Chris’ cell on their bed before he stripped out of his wet, sandy trunks and headed after JC to rinse off.

Ten minutes later Justin and JC walked into the den and found Lance and Chris on the couch, Lance laying down with his head in Chris’ lap and drowsily watching the TV while Chris flipped through the channels looking for a movie. Chris had gone and changed into a pair of sweats when they got inside, but Lance was still wearing just his swim trunks, his pale skin looking even lighter in the dark room. Joey was nowhere to be seen but JC figured he was changing clothes or looking for a blanket, sure Lance would be cold before long if he wasn’t already. He was always cold after one of his spells, something the tour doctor, Yolanda, had told them was part of how Lance’s body reacted to the mental and physical stress his heart problem caused.

Justin put Chris’ cell on the coffee table as JC sat down in one of the armchairs, then walked over by JC and started to sit down in the floor. JC had other ideas though and reached out to grab Justin’s hips, pulling Justin down across his lap with a big grin. Justin chuckled softly and kissed JC before he squirmed around to get comfortable and then tucked his head under JC’s chin to watch TV.

Chris flipped through channels steadily until he came across TMC, which said the movie ‘ _Practical Magic_ _’_ was next, and Lance spoke up softly to ask, "Is that one any good?"

Chris looked down at Lance in surprise. "You haven’t seen it?"

Lance shook his head slightly and looked up at Chris. "Nuh-uh, have you?"

"Yeah, I saw it when it first came out," Chris answered, smiling. "Sandra’s great in it."

"It’s a really good movie," JC added, smiling at the pair on the couch as Justin nodded against his chest.

"Lets watch it, then," Lance said, rolling to lay on his side facing the TV as he spoke.

"Sure baby," Chris replied, turning the volume up a bit so they could hear it better before he put the remote on the end table next to the couch, absently stroking Lance’s hair as they waited for the movie to start.

Joey walked into the nearly dark den a moment later with an extra blanket he’d taken from the bedroom they weren’t using and draped it over Lance, earning him a smile from Chris as Lance reached out to grab Joey’s hand and said softly, "Thanks."

Joey squeezed Lance’s hand and smiled softly at him. "You’re welcome, baby." He let go of Lance’s hand after a moment and moved to the end of the couch, lifting Lance’s feet and then sitting down before he put them in his lap. Joey tucked the blanket around Lance’s feet and then leaned back to watch the movie, glad they’d decided to watch ‘ _Practical Magic_ _’_ because he hadn’t seen it yet.

By the time Sandra Bullock made her first appearance, Lance was sound asleep and Chris was well on his way to following him, but the other three stayed awake and watched the movie, making sure not to laugh too loud and wake either of them.

 

 

 

Mike and Charlie had been talking to Lloyd and Melanie for well over an hour when Charlie excused himself to go use the bathroom, leaving Mike alone with Melanie and Lloyd.

Lloyd spoke up after a few moments, curious. "So, when are you two planning on getting married?"

Melanie looked surprised at that but Mike just laughed. "We haven’t talked about it."

Lloyd cocked his head sideways at Mike and grinned as he said, "Aww, c’mon kid, you two are so in love it’s not even funny and you haven’t even _talked_ about marriage?"

Mike shook his head, smiling. "No, we haven’t, really. We’ll be too busy with the guys to be going to Vermont anytime soon anyway, I’m sure."

Melanie looked confused. "What does Vermont have to do with anything?"

Lloyd chuckled and squeezed her hand. "It’s only legal for two men to get married in Vermont, Melly."

"And really only as long as we stay in Vermont," Charlie added as he returned to the room, "but it’s still not considered a marriage, it’s a civil union." Charlie continued across the room to sit down next to Mike, and then he smiled at him. "How did we get on the subject of marriage anyway?"

Mike pointed at Lloyd. "His fault!"

Charlie’s eyes widened, then he grinned. "So you’re finally going to marry my mom?!"

Melanie took one look at Lloyd’s face then and started giggling while he spluttered, and after a moment he mock-glared at her and said, "Woman, you are not helping."

Melanie tried hard to stifle her giggles and after a moment she finally managed to ask, "Was I supposed to?"

"Yes!" Lloyd replied, "You’re _supposed_ to help me tell them all about how _you_ want to wait."

Melanie tried hard to look innocent. "Well, why didn’t you just say so?"

Lloyd snorted. "I just did."

Melanie made a face at him as Charlie asked, "Why do you want to wait?! You’ve been dating for almost as long as me and Mike have been together, and I know you love each other."

Melanie looked at Charlie, obviously thinking, then asked, "Do you want us to get married?’

"It’s not my decision," Charlie replied immediately, surprised. "I do personally think that if someone is in love and knows it will be forever then they should get married, but that doesn’t mean you have to."

"You love Mike and it’s forever, but he says you two haven’t even discussed marriage," Melanie said.

"It’s not so easy for us, Mom." Charlie paused a moment and then went on, "If we went to Vermont and had a civil ceremony it wouldn’t necessarily be recognized legally in any other state, and would be outright illegal in the thirty-six states that don’t allow the recognition of gay marriages." Charlie blushed slightly as he went on, "If someone wanted to make trouble for me, I could go to jail in thirteen states, including this one, because of what I’ve done with Mike. I could be fined or spend anywhere from thirty days to life in prison, depending on the state and the judge."

Melanie was quiet a long moment, half wishing he hadn’t told her all of that. "Do you want to, though? Would you marry Mike if you could I mean?"

"Probably," Charlie replied.

Mike looked surprised. "Probably?!"

Charlie turned his head to look at Mike, reaching to take his hand with a smile. "Yeah. If you wanted to I would in a heartbeat, but if you didn’t I wouldn’t argue. I’m happy just to be with you."

"Of course I’d want to marry you if I could, Char," Mike said, frowning. "You’re everything to me. I’d love to be Michael Kohl."

Melanie and Lloyd both looked surprised by that but Charlie ignored them as he smiled and leaned a little closer to Mike, asking, "You’d want my name?"

"Of course," Mike replied, not bothering to elaborate. As far as Mike was concerned his family was Charlie and Melanie – and to a slightly lesser extent Kelsey and Lloyd – and he had no desire to share the last name Allen with anyone anymore, much less inflict it on Charlie. He’d much rather become a Kohl.

Charlie’s smile widened a bit as he asked softly, "Have I mentioned how much I love you recently?"

Mike smiled and let go of Charlie’s hand to put his arm around him again. "Yeah baby, but you know I don’t mind hearing it again."

Charlie just smiled and leaned against Mike, his right hand resting on Mike’s thigh as he turned his head to look back at his mother. "You never did answer me, Mom."

Melanie looked at Charlie for a long moment and then said, "I wanted to wait until you left for college."

Charlie was surprised by that and looked confused as he asked, "Why?"

"Because I didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable," Melanie replied.

"I wouldn’t, I know you love Lloyd." Charlie frowned slightly, then asked, "If not for me, would you have gotten married before now?"

Melanie bit her lip much like Charlie often did when he was upset or thinking hard, then said quietly, "Most likely, yes."

"Mom, that’s not—" Charlie broke off, upset but not knowing how to articulate what he was feeling.

"We talked it over a dozen times," Lloyd put in then, adding, "I don’t mind waiting, Charlie. I’d wait forever for Melly if that’s what she wanted."

Melanie smiled at Lloyd and patted his knee. "It’s been barely a year since you asked me, that’s far from forever."

Lloyd took her hand, smiling. "I know, but I’m still carrying it around waiting for you to say yes."

Melanie’s eyebrows went up. "You’re still carrying my ring around?"

"Of course!" Lloyd replied with a grin, amused by her saying ‘my ring’ even though she hadn’t accepted it. "I don’t want you to finally decide you’re ready and not have it with me!"

"There’s no reason to wait anymore you know," Charlie said suddenly, grinning. "I’m well settled. I’ve got Mike and the guys and a great job, and going away with them is probably as close to college as I’m going to get."

Melanie looked suddenly thoughtful at that, obviously considering what her son had said, and Lloyd decided to press his luck, hoping she’d say yes now that she knew Charlie wanted her to. Lloyd let go of her right hand as he slipped off the arm of her chair to kneel by her feet, reaching into the pocket of his jeans as he asked softly, "Will you marry me, Melly? I love you and I want to spend forever with you, you know that."

Melanie was silent as she watched him flip open his wallet to let the ring drop out of it into the palm of his hand, then he put his wallet back in his pocket without ever breaking eye contact. She finally smiled and nodded, her eyes shining. "I’d love to marry you."

"Is that really a yes this time?" Lloyd asked, his expression happily surprised.

Melanie nodded, smiling as she offered him her left hand and then watching as he slipped the ring on before Lloyd jumped to his feet with a whoop, pulling her out of her chair to stand with him. He grinned at her and kissed her soundly before he laughed and picked her up, turning and swinging her around in a little circle while she giggled, then he sat down where she had been and pulled her down in his lap to kiss her again.

Charlie looked at Mike then, grinning. "We don’t have to worry about Mom being here all alone anymore."

Mike chuckled softly and gave Charlie a squeeze. "No baby, we sure don’t."

 

 


	65. Chapter 65

 

~~~~ 65 ~~~~

 

When ‘ _Practical Magic_ ’ ended there was a fifteen minute wait until the next movie, ‘ _Demolition Man_ ’, during which they found out TMC was doing a ‘night at the movies with Sandra Bullock’ thing and that another of her movies would be after ‘ _Demolition Man_ ’. Joey, Justin, and JC all agreed ‘ _Demolition Man_ ’ sounded good -- they’d seen it before but not in a long time -- so they decided to just wait for it to come on.

Justin got bored when the previews began repeating after a couple of minutes though, so he got up to go get the remote and then sat back down in the floor by JC’s feet, flipping through the channels rather quickly as he checked to see what else was on while JC absently played with his short curls. It didn’t take long for Justin to figure out there was nothing good on TV at nine-thirty on a Thursday night so he put it back on TMC and put the remote on the little end table between the couch and the chair, then settled back down to lean against JC’s legs and wait for the movie.

JC looked down not long after the movie started and had to smile when he saw that Justin was sound asleep, slumped against JC’s chair between his legs in a position JC was sure couldn’t be very comfortable, his cheek resting against the inside of JC’s knee. JC ran his fingers gently through Justin’s hair then, his smile widening when Justin leaned into his touch slightly and mumbled his name, turning more towards JC as he snuggled closer to his leg. JC pulled his hand away after a moment and just watched Justin sleep with a soft smile, completely ignoring the movie and unaware that Joey was watching them both from the nearby couch with a smile of his own.

 

 

 

Charlie called Kelsey’s cell phone from the kitchen a little while after ten o’clock, figuring they’d probably go meet her at her house or something, but Kelsey said she was at the restaurant helping out with a wedding party and asked them to come by there. Charlie didn’t want to bother her while she was working so she told him to come by sometime around eleven thirty and Charlie agreed, then hung up, walking back out to join the others in the living room only to stop in the doorway in surprise. Mike and his mother had exchanged seats while he was gone and now Melanie and Lloyd were on the couch together while Mike sat in the overstuffed armchair, all three of them watching some movie with Sylvester Stallone in it.

Charlie walked over to stand behind Mike’s chair after a couple of minutes, leaning forward over the back until his head was next to Mike’s and impulsively draping his arms around Mike’s neck as he said softly, "Kelce has to work, I told her we’d come by around closing time."

Mike turned his head to smile at Charlie, lifting one hand to rub Charlie’s arm as he replied quietly, "Sounds fine to me, Char. Are we gonna stick around here a while or go ahead and go, or what?"

Charlie shrugged. "Up to you. We don’t have to go for an hour or so."

Mike grinned and said, "Then come get comfortable, babe, this is a good movie."

"Really?" Charlie asked, looking up at the television to see Stallone standing by this little metal box on the wall, cussing at it while pulling slips of paper out of it as the box repeatedly called him John Spartan, then Stallone waved the handful of paper at Sandra Bullock – Charlie recognized her anyway – and said something about seashells. Melanie, Lloyd and Mike all laughed at that but it didn’t make sense to Charlie and he gave Mike a funny look, asking, "Was that supposed to make sense?"

Melanie giggled as Mike nodded, grinning at Charlie. "Yeah, baby, it made sense. Come sit down and watch the movie, you’ll like it."

Charlie gave him a dubious look but pulled away to walk around Mike’s chair, intending to go sit in the other armchair until Mike reached out and grabbed him on his way by, pulling him down across Mike’s lap in an inelegant sprawl. "Michael!"

Melanie and Lloyd both watched them with amused expressions, ignoring the movie for the moment as Mike grinned at Charlie and said, "Yeah, Char?"

Charlie tried hard to look annoyed but it only lasted a few seconds before he smiled, bemused. "Did you want me to sit with you?"

"Well duh," Mike replied, still grinning. "You know I never turn down a chance to have you in my lap."

Charlie made a face at him. "Then why didn’t you just say so instead of knocking me down?"

"‘Cause I figured you’d argue," Mike replied immediately, "and now you’re already here so I have a better chance of getting you to stay."

Charlie laughed and squirmed around to get more comfortable, slipping his arms around Mike’s neck and leaning in close as Mike’s hands settled comfortably on his hip and thigh. "There’s just one problem, Mikey," Charlie said after a moment, "so I can’t stay."

Mike’s grin faded. "And why not?"

"Because I can’t see the television," Charlie replied, grinning.

Mike looked surprised and then gave him a wicked grin. "Did you really want to watch TV?"

Charlie laughed and gave Mike a quick kiss. "Let me up."

"Spoilsport." Mike made a face and let go of him so Charlie could stand up, looking disappointed, then his eyebrows went up as Charlie climbed into his lap again, this time facing the TV as he slid one arm around Mike’s waist.

"Much better," Charlie said quietly, shifting a bit to get comfortable before he laid his head on Mike’s shoulder to watch television, even though he wasn’t really paying attention to it.

Mike’s arms went around Charlie after a second or two and then Mike kissed his forehead, giving him a squeeze before he turned his attention back to the TV.

Charlie tried hard to relax and stop thinking about the fact his mother was just a few feet away. He was trying to be open about how much he loved Mike and wanted to be with him, really he was, but it was still a little surreal. If he and Mike were alone, he wouldn’t have thought twice about curling up in Mike’s lap – he loved it when Mike held him and he knew Mike loved it too – but doing the same thing in front of other people felt a little weird. Not because Mike was holding him, he still loved that, but because he knew others could see Mike holding him, which was stupid because he wasn’t at all ashamed of loving Mike or letting the world see how he felt.

It didn’t make sense to Mike, who wasn’t ashamed of anything he’d ever done with Charlie and didn’t care who knew it, but Mike would have been surprised to hear that it didn’t really make sense to Charlie either. Charlie loved Mike and wanted to be with him and wanted the world to know Mike was his, but he still felt a little uncomfortable being physically affectionate in front of other people.

Charlie was pulled out of his thoughts then by Mike leaning down so his mouth was a little closer to his ear as he said softly, "Stop thinking so hard, baby."

Melanie looked over at them again then as Charlie lifted his head to look up at Mike in surprise. He was about to ask how Mike knew he was thinking again – he _always_ seemed to know, which bugged Charlie sometimes – but Mike gave Charlie a kiss on the end of the nose without waiting for him to speak and then whispered, "I know you, don’t try to tell me you’re not brooding."

Charlie gave Mike a wry little smile. "Am I that predictable?" he whispered softly, barely able to hear himself but still sure Mike would hear him. Mike always heard him, even if he didn’t want him to.

"Yeah," Mike replied with a little smile, "but the biggest tip off was that you’re not laughing. Just relax and enjoy the movie, okay?"

Charlie returned the smile and nodded, then laid his head on Mike’s shoulder again, this time making an effort to watch TV instead of thinking, and soon they were both chuckling as Wesley Snipes and Stallone proceeded to demolish a museum.

Melanie watched them for a moment longer and then turned her attention to the movie too, wondering what Charlie was thinking about. She hadn’t been able to hear everything, but she’d clearly made out Mike telling Charlie to relax and it made her wonder if Charlie was really as okay with coming out as he said he was. She wanted to ask Mike how Charlie was handling everything – she’d rather talk to Mike about it because she knew he would answer anything – but she knew there was almost no chance they’d be alone before the boys had to leave.

She sighed and shifted a little closer to Lloyd, watching Charlie and Mike and thinking that it wasn’t her place anymore to protect Charlie and take care of him, if it ever really had been. Mike did an excellent job of keeping Charlie safe and had for years, and she would just have to trust him to help Charlie through whatever was bugging him now too. If anyone could it was Mike, he knew Charlie better than Charlie knew himself sometimes and much better than Melanie did, even though she had always thought she and Charlie were pretty close.

Charlie and Mike both started laughing then, Charlie blushing bright red as Lloyd gave them an amused look and said, "Guys, I don’t want to know."

Mike gave Lloyd a bright grin, eyes sparkling. "You’re right, you don’t." Charlie hid his face against Mike’s chest, still giggling even though he was completely mortified.

Melanie looked at Lloyd and asked, "Okay, what did she say?"

Lloyd grinned and leaned over to whisper in her ear, explaining Sandra Bullock’s mistake when she tried to say ‘kicked his ass’ while Mike watched with a grin.

Melanie looked at Mike, wide-eyed. "Boys, I think they call that too much information. Way too much information."

Charlie finally lifted his head then, looking studiously at the television. "You can say that again."

 

 

 

‘ _Demolition Man_ ’ had been on for over an hour when Lance tried to roll over and nearly fell off the couch, waking both himself and Chris up as he clutched at Chris’ knee to keep from falling. "Careful, baby," Joey said softly.

Lance blinked a few times as Chris gently rubbed his back, then sat up and moved to lean against Chris as he yawned and looked at Joey. "What did I miss?"

Joey chuckled and scooted along the couch until he was close enough to tuck the blanket back around the other two, earning a sleepy smile from Chris and a grateful look from Lance, who snuggled up to Chris as Joey said, "All of ‘ _Practical Magic_ _’_ and ‘ _Demolition Man_ ’, too. You were out like a light almost as soon as we got good and comfortable."

Chris chuckled softly as Lance gave Joey a wry smile and said, "I guess I was more tired than I thought."

"I think we all were," JC said softly then, causing the others to look over at him to see him slowly stroking Justin’s curls as Justin blinked sleepily at them, his head resting in JC’s lap. JC smiled and said, "I think we should go to bed, get a full night’s sleep for once."

Joey nodded, smiling. "That’s a good idea."

Lance sighed and nodded. "Yeah, but we really should wait up for Charlie and Mike, they don’t have a key."

"We’ll leave the kitchen door unlocked for them, babe," Chris said quietly, shifting a bit to turn more towards Lance so he could wrap both arms around him. "It’s a closed community with Dre and Scotty right next door, and you know they’re keeping an eye on who goes in and out of our little street no matter how many times we’ve told them it’s their vacation too. Mike and Char can take care of themselves."

Lance looked dubious still but JC nodded and added quietly, "And they might be out late, they mentioned going to see Kelsey. She might want to practice more for that dance contest tomorrow night."

Justin stood then and stretched. "I’ll be right back."

JC smiled. "Okay, baby."

Lance watched Justin give JC a quick kiss and then leave as he thought about it, his usual caution about security making him really hesitant to leave the door unlocked even though figured the others were probably right. He finally decided to go with his gut feeling and smiled slightly after another moment or two, nodding as he moved just a bit closer to Chris and wrapped his arms around the older man. "Y’all are right, it’ll be safe enough to leave the kitchen door unlocked for them. I’m definitely ready for bed, I hadn’t realized how tired I was." Joey and Chris exchanged a look at that and Joey was just about to speak again when Lance added, "Maybe I’ll even get to sleep by midnight."

JC chuckled softly. "It’s not even eleven o’clock, Scoop."

Lance grinned, nodding against Chris’ chest. "Yeah, but just ‘cause I’m going to bed doesn’t mean I’m going to sleep."

"Oh yes it does," Chris said immediately, making Lance sit up in surprise to look at him. "You need the rest a whole lot more than you need to get laid, and rest is what you’re going to get even if I have to slip you a mickey."

Joey opened his mouth to say something then but didn’t get a chance to as Lance asked incredulously, "You mean to tell me I don’t get any tonight?"

Chris frowned. "You need to rest, baby. Three-way sex is not very restful."

JC chuckled. "Like any sex is."

Lance to twisted around to give JC a dirty look then just as Joey chuckled and said, "We’ll compromise, okay babe? You can watch us and then we’ll take care of you. That sound a little better?"

Chris looked like he wanted to argue as Lance gave Joey a put upon look and whined, "But I wanted to do Chris."

Justin walked into the room and moved over to sit on the arm of JC’s chair while Joey grinned and reached over to pat Lance’s knee as he said, "I’m sure he’ll let you in the morning, baby, you know he loves it at least as much as you do, but he’s right, tonight you need to rest." Lance frowned, about to argue, and Joey added, "Of course, if you don’t want to let us slow you down, I guess we could just make you sleep alone for a few days like I did in Toronto."

"No, no, I’ll be good," Lance replied a little too quickly, trying to ignore the fact Justin and JC were both grinning now. "I’d like to watch you two anyway."

Joey grinned and leaned over to give Lance a quick kiss on the cheek, then stood up. "I knew you’d see it our way, babe."

Lance snorted softly then and gave Joey a dirty look, ignoring Justin and JC’s grins as both stood up and he replied acerbically, "I don’t see that I have much choice."

Chris stood up too then, offering Lance a hand up with a little grin. "You know we’re just doing it ‘cause we love you."

Lance looked up at Chris for a moment and then sighed, throwing the blanket onto the couch next to him before he took Chris’ hand and let him pull him to his feet. "I know," Lance said as he stepped closer to Chris to slip his arms around the older man with a sudden little grin. "I can’t help it that I want you even when I shouldn’t."

Chris laughed and gave Lance a quick dirty kiss, then said, "Just remember that next time I try to drag you off into the bathroom at a mall or something."

Justin and JC both started laughing at that and Lance turned his head to make a face at them. "You two aren’t helping, y’know."

"Were we supposed to?" JC asked, grinning.

"Yes!" Lance replied immediately, "You should help me convince them that I’m fine."

JC shook his head, still grinning. "No dice, Scoop, you’ll have to live with nothing but a blowjob tonight."

Lance stuck his tongue out at JC and then made a little surprised noise when Chris leaned in and kissed him, sucking on his tongue as Lance swayed even closer, licking deeper into Chris’ mouth and running his hands over Chris’ ass while making tiny little noises in his throat. Chris growled into the kiss and deepened it, letting Lance’s tongue slip from his mouth only to follow it with his own, sliding his tongue wetly against Lance’s, curling around it and then licking at the roof of Lance’s mouth. Lance pulled Chris closer then, rubbing up against him, and the pleased noises Lance was making deepened into something closer to a growl when he felt Chris’ arousal hot and firm against his thigh through Chris’ sweats and the thin material of his swim trunks.

Chris finally pulled away then, breathing a little fast as he looked into Lance’s eyes and said softly, "Maybe a little more than a blowjob. If you promise to behave and don’t go all dom and try to fuck me into the mattress."

JC and Justin laughed as Lance blushed slightly and hid his face against Chris’ neck, whispering, "I promise."

Joey raised an eyebrow at Chris, who winked at him and then kissed the side of Lance’s neck before he pulled away suddenly and turned Lance towards the kitchen. "C’mon, baby, time for bed."

Lance smiled and let himself be guided towards the kitchen until JC stepped into his path with a smile to make him stop. JC kissed Lance then, just a quick brush of his lips against Lance’s before he leaned past Lance’s shoulder to do the same to Chris and then pulled back to look at both of them, smiling as he said, "Night, you two. Be good."

Chris nodded, returning the smile as Lance said, "I will."

JC gave Lance a quick kiss on the cheek and moved away from him towards Joey as Justin took his place to smile down at Lance and say softly, "We love you." Justin didn’t give Lance a chance to respond before he leaned down to kiss him, lingering longer than JC had but not deepening the kiss past the gentle press of his lips against Lance’s. Justin pulled away after a moment though and then stepped closer so he could reach Chris to kiss him too, teasingly flickering his tongue against Chris’ upper lip before he lifted his head to grin at him and said, "And you too, Critter."

Chris returned the grin. "Night, kid."

Justin turned to start towards Joey in time to see JC pull away from Joey and give him a grin of his own, then JC turned to the coffee table to pick up Chris’ cell phone. Justin quickly walked over to Joey to give him a little smile and say, "G’night, Joe." He stepped in close and slipped his arms around Joey to give him a hug, which Joey returned with a relieved look that he quickly tried to hide.

"Night, Jup," Joey replied softly, giving Justin a squeeze before he let him go.

JC reached for Justin’s hand then and said, "We’re going to go outside a little while before bed. See y’all in the morning."

"Don’t stay out too late," Chris said with a grin.

"We won’t," JC replied, smiling, then he tugged at Justin’s hand and led him outside, leaving Joey, Chris, and Lance alone.

Lance looked at Chris and then Joey as he said, "Are we going to bed or not?"

Joey chuckled and started towards the kitchen as Chris grabbed Lance’s hand and followed him, towing Lance along behind them. "Bed, yes. Sleep, no."

Lance grinned and followed them, hoping they’d forget he wasn’t supposed to play too even though he seriously doubted it would happen.

 

 

 

Justin followed JC outside, wondering what they were going to do – JC had said he was ready for bed – when JC reached the tables and let go of Justin’s hand to begin stacking the pizza boxes they’d left out there. Justin chuckled softly to himself and started to help JC as he said, "I forgot we hadn’t picked everything up yet."

JC looked up to give Justin a quick smile, then started stacking the used paper plates. "So did Scoop, or he’d be out here doing it."

"True," Justin replied, smiling, then he moved to pick up the three boxes that still had pizza in them. "I’ll take these inside and get a trash bag while you finish gathering up the cans and stuff, okay?"

JC nodded, moving to pick up a few cans that had rolled off the table onto the deck. "Sounds good, baby."

Justin picked up the pizzas and carried them inside to put them in the fridge before he began to dig around in the cabinets for a trash bag, widening the search when they weren’t under the sink. He checked in the pantry and then in the cabinets over the sink, and he was about to give up when he decided to check the laundry room, where he found a shelf over the washer with cleaning supplies and three different sizes of trash bags. He took one of the small bags and then walked quietly back outside to join JC, smiling when he saw him leaning against the railing looking out at the ocean.

Justin dropped the trash bag on the table and then walked over behind JC, resting his hands on JC’s hips as he leaned forward to kiss the back of his neck, whispering softly against his skin. "You’re so beautiful."

JC smiled and turned slightly as he leaned back against Justin, lifting one hand to reach up and rest it on the back of Justin’s neck and pull him a little closer, obviously wanting a kiss. Justin obliged him, licking at JC’s lips as they parted against his own and then slowly exploring JC’s mouth with his tongue as his hands moved from JC’s hips to his stomach, pulling JC’s hips back against his so that JC could feel his arousal. JC moaned softly into the kiss, rocking his hips back against Justin as he sucked at Justin’s tongue, gently scraping it with his teeth as Justin pulled away, breaking the kiss. Justin bit gently at JC’s lower lip and then began slowly trailing kisses down JC’s throat, pausing after a moment to nibble and suck at a particularly sensitive spot as JC tipped his head back to rest on Justin’s shoulder. JC shuddered, reaching back with his free hand to hold on to Justin’s hip as Justin tightened his left arm around him, combing the fingers of his other hand through the downy hair on JC’s belly as his hand slid below the waistband of his sweats.

JC let out a soft, eager noise when Justin’s fingers found his cock and stroked around the base, and he had to hold on to the back of Justin’s neck with one hand to steady himself as the other slid back further to stroke Justin’s ass and he whispered, "We should fini— God," JC groaned, gasping for breath as Justin’s fingertip ghosted along the underside of his cock, then he swallowed hard and finished huskily, "finish so we can go inside."

Justin grinned against JC’s neck. "Inside could be..." Justin’s hand moved in JC’s sweats then, closing around his cock as he lifted his head, and his hips nudged forward against JC again so JC could feel him hot and hard against his ass as he growled softly into JC’s ear, "... fan-fucking-tastic."

JC whimpered and rocked back against Justin, breathing shallowly as he agreed softly, "Oh yeah."

Justin lowered his head to nibble at the purple mark he’d left earlier on JC’s collarbone, drawing a low moan from JC as his knees buckled slightly, then Justin lifted his head again to put his lips by JC’s ear and whisper, "We could clean up the trash in the morning."

"We shouldn’t leav— Oh God," JC gasped as Justin’s hand moved again, arching his back and thrusting as Justin smirked and licked along the curve of his ear.

"Nobody will care, Josh," Justin whispered softly then, his breath tingling against the damp skin of JC’s ear as he kept slowly stroking him, pulling JC back against him with his left arm to hold him still so JC couldn’t speed up the pace as he added, "I’ll come out here and clean it up first thing in the morning." JC groaned instead of replying, trying to thrust into Justin’s hand again and then grinding back against Justin’s cock as Justin’s hand stilled and he grinned against his ear, whispering huskily, "Let me take you to bed and make love to you, baby."

JC shuddered as Justin gently nibbled the edge of his ear again, and when Justin’s thumb slid over the head of his cock he cried out softly, only Justin’s arm around him keeping him on his feet as his knees turned to water. JC inhaled sharply when Justin gave his cock a squeeze and then moaned through a slow, firm tug that left no doubt as to how skilled Justin was at jerking off, his breath coming out in soft pants as Justin stroked him again, tiny hungry sounds that he wasn’t even aware of welling up out of his throat. JC’s panting and the soft noises he was making just aroused Justin even more, and he growled softly as he bit the soft skin below JC’s ear as he stroked him again, grinding his cock slowly against JC’s ass.

JC let out a low moan, pressing back against Justin, and cleaning up the porch was completely forgotten when Justin thrust against him, making him whimper, "Justin, I need you."

Justin growled and licked up the back of JC’s ear, then took his hand out of JC’s sweats and bent to scoop him up in his arms, carrying him quickly along the deck towards their room.

 

 


	66. Chapter 66

 

~~~~ 66 ~~~~

 

Gary walked into the large airy bathroom as he quickly pulled a brush through his long hair, his green eyes sparkling with amusement as he sang along to the radio with much more enthusiasm than actual talent. "’ _With your cherry lips and golden curls, you make grown men gasp when you go walking past. And in your hot pants and high heels, they could not believe that such a body was for real._ ’" He set aside the brush and picked up a brown tortoiseshell banana clip, gathering his wavy brown hair into it high on the back of his head and humming along as the second verse of the song continued, then he turned his head from side to side so he could inspect his reflection critically. He had a delicate jawline and a long, graceful neck, and wearing his hair up showed both off to their best advantage, besides being comfortable and easy.

He grinned after a moment, deciding that his hair looked good, and then reached for a pair of dangly silver earrings Jake liked as the chorus started, singing along as he hooked the wires through the holes lowest on his earlobes. "’ _You_ _’_ _re such a delicate boy, in the hysterical realm, of an emotional landslide, in physical terms_.’" He reached for his jewelry box then, sifting through it looking for the emerald studs Jake had gotten him for his twenty-first birthday as he sang, "’ _You hold a candle in your heart... To shine the light on hidden parts. You make the whole world wanna dance... You bought yourself a second chance._ ’"

Gary finally found the earrings a moment later and put them into the second set of holes in his earlobes, grinning at himself in the mirror as he moved slightly to the beat of the song, hardly able to wait for Jake to get off work at eleven so they could go clubbing. He lowered his hands when the earrings were securely in his ears to check his reflection again, stepping back to take in the way the short, flared jean skirt set off his rather nice legs before letting his eyes roam upwards over the loose peasant blouse that was almost the same shade of blue and set off his shapely shoulders and collarbone. When he finally met his own sparkling green-eyed gaze in the mirror he surveyed his face a moment, deciding the only makeup he would need was a bit of eyeshadow and some lip gloss. He smirked at his reflection and said, "You’re hot as hell."

"I know I am." Gary whirled around in surprise to see Jake standing there watching him with an almost insufferably smug grin. "You are too though."

Gary laughed, walking over to Jake and slipping his fingers into Jake’s front pockets as he tipped his head back for a kiss that Jake gave him without argument, lingering as his hands moved to rest on Gary’s waist. Jake finally pulled away after a long moment though, and Gary smiled up at him as he asked, "What’re you doing home again?"

Jake made a face. "I was late, and he fired me."

"You’re kidding!" Gary exclaimed, looking shocked. "You’ve been tending bar for Paddy for _seven years_ , and he fired you ‘cause you were a little late? The club doesn’t even open for another two hours!"

"He’s still pissed over the trouble with Tony, and he said me being a half hour late was just the last straw." Jake gave a little one-armed shrug, then added, "It won’t be hard to find work, half the clubs in town have told me at one time or another to give ’em a call if I ever wanted a change of scenery. I’ll just have to take a week or so to put the word out that I’m looking."

Gary sighed, his gaze falling dispiritedly to stare at the triangle of smooth chest visible through the open collar of Jake’s shirt a moment before he brightened suddenly and looked up again. "Well, that means you don’t have anywhere you have to be for the next few days, right?"

Jake laughed softly and nodded. "Yeah. What did you have in mind?"

Gary gave Jake a coy little smile, lifting his hands to toy with the upper buttons on his shirt. "Spend the rest of the week with me."

Jake grinned, his hands sliding from Gary’s waist down and around to his ass, pulling him closer with a little pleased growl. "I like the way you think. Anything in particular you wanted to do?" Jake paused a beat, smirking, then added, "Besides each other." Gary nodded, looking up at Jake through his eyelashes with that little smile, and Jake waited for a moment for him to answer before he asked, "Well? What is it?"

Gary leaned forward and licked into the hollow at the base of Jake’s throat, smiling against Jake’s skin at the soft approving noise Jake made as he nuzzled his neck, then suddenly pulled back to grin brightly up at him. "Let’s take Bandit to the beach!"

Jake looked surprised, immediately making the connection. "You really think you can get us tickets on such short notice?"

Gary nodded quickly and moved his hands up to lace his fingers behind Jake’s neck. "All of Bandit’s paperwork was with the stuff Tony gave us, so no worries there. I bet Latrice can get us on the next flight east."

"I better start packing then," Jake replied with a sudden grin. "Go make the call."

Gary beamed and stretched upwards, pulling Jake down for a quick kiss before he let him go and moved quickly into their bedroom, walking towards the door to the den as he called over his shoulder, "I’ll be in drag most of the time, so you worry about getting your stuff together and let me pack mine."

Jake grinned and followed him into their room, detouring to the closet to get a suitcase and then smiling as he noticed the song playing on the radio, beginning to sing along as he dropped the suitcase on the bed. "’ _He_ _’_ _s the one who likes all our pretty songs, and he likes to sing along, and he likes to shoot his gun. But he knows not what it means... Knows not what it means... And I say yeah_.’"

 

 

 

‘Gina’ pulled his bare feet up to rest them on the bag in the chair next to them and curled up comfortably against Jake’s chest, wrapping one arm around Jake’s neck. He was sitting in Jake’s lap, his favorite place to be, and enjoying playing the part of Jake’s pampered little girlfriend for the people in the terminal while they waited. He’d been teasing Jake off and on since they got settled in to wait, flirting and giggling and just generally playing around, and he thought it was quite amusing that he’d gotten three propositions on his trip to the restroom a few minutes ago. The funniest part, to him at least, was that one of the people who hit on him had been another occupant of the ladies room at the time, and wearing a pink triangular pin on her lapel. He always took being hit on by lesbians as a compliment of the highest sort.

Gary had changed clothes for the flight because airplanes were always too cold for him, and was now wearing a long, heavy skirt of deep forest green with a sleek little black sweater that was set off beautifully by the simple silver cuff bracelet and Celtic lover’s knot pendant he wore match his earrings. He also wore a silver ring worked with the Celtic endless knot pattern, but he hadn’t taken it off since Jake gave it to him and didn’t really include it when he thought about his ‘jewelry’. As far as Gary was concerned, the ring was a permanent part of his hand, just like the tattoo of his name entwined with the same pattern on Jake’s shoulder was a permanent part of Jake.

Latrice had managed to get them first class tickets at a reduced rate because the rest of the flight was full, and Bandit was safely in his carrier, probably already on the plane with the luggage and the other two dogs scheduled on this flight, so all that was left to do was for them to board. Gary had never flown first class before, so he was looking forward to seeing what it was like to be treated like one of the beautiful people, and that added to the prospect of a four-day trip with Jake to go someplace he’d never been and a stay on the beach for a few days with JC had him so excited he seriously doubted he’d be able to sleep on the flight. Jake didn’t think he would either, so their carry on bag had a book he’d been wanting to read in it -- Kurt Cobain’s biography, ‘ _Heavier Than Heaven_ ’ -- and his Walkman with extra batteries, the little button earphones he preferred, and a dozen CDs Gary liked.

Gary was an anomaly amongst the gay men he had known because he listened mostly to alternative rock, grunge and punk bands, and it was a rare thing for him to listen to anything else outside of a club, except for ‘Josh’s guys’. He hadn’t listened to pop radio in years if given a choice, and he most often kept his stereo tuned to a hard rock station that called itself ‘The Pig’ and completely lived up to its name. The DJs were obnoxiously chauvinistic for the most part, but the music was great and the early morning DJs were a straight man and a lesbian couple, and the three of them were hilarious to listen to if he happened to be up.

"Flight 983, non-stop to Nashville, loading now at gate 17a," a too-polite female voice said over the loudspeakers then, and Gary lifted his head quickly to grin at Jake, who chuckled.

"Time to go!" Gary said brightly, swinging his legs around and bouncing to his feet to straighten his long skirt, totally ignoring the appreciative looks he got from a few of the other passengers who were gathering their things as he hiked his skirt up so he could see his feet and carefully stepped into the high-heels he’d kicked off when they arrived almost an hour ago.

Jake stood up, picking their carry on bag up out of the chair and shrugging into the strap on it as he watched Gary with a grin, enjoying his enthusiasm. "Yeah, baby, it’s time to go sit on an airplane for eight and a half hours."

"In first class!" Gary added with a happy grin, stepping closer to Jake and stretching upwards for a kiss, which Jake obliged him with, then Gary smirked. "And I’m going to sleep in your lap when I get tired, no matter what the stewardesses say. It’s not like they can throw us out."

Jake chuckled, shaking his head as he started towards the gate, guiding Gary along behind two women who looked like they were probably sisters with a hand on the small of his back. "You’ll get us in trouble, baby. I’m sure that sort of thing is frowned on."

Gary’s smirk didn’t fade a bit. "If they complain, I’ll just tell them they’re lucky we’re not joining the Mile High Club. I bet they’ll let me sleep after that."

One of the women walking towards the plane in front of them giggled at that, looking over her shoulder at Gary and Jake, and Jake winked at her before he looked at Gary and said, "Just don’t give yourself any ideas, baby, cause that’s one club we are not joining." He paused a beat, then smirked and added, "At least not tonight."

Gary leaned against Jake’s shoulder, giggling as they stopped in line with the others boarding the plane. "But it would be fun, honey, and something to scandalize Josh with when we get there. He’s been such a prude for so long that you just know he hasn’t done it in a plane."

The ladies in front of them both giggled then as Jake laughed and moved his hand from Gary’s back to lightly swat his ass. "Baby, behave yourself. I’m sure you can think of some other way to scandalize Josh once we get there."

Gary giggled again and nodded, following the women in from of them as the line moved forward slowly. "You’re right, he’s easy to scandalize."

Jake chuckled, shaking his head ruefully and hoping JC wouldn’t regret their impromptu visit.

 

 

 

Charlie yawned as he climbed into their Tracker, waiting for Mike to get in and start the car and then scooting over to curl up against his shoulder and closing his eyes as Mike watched him, smiling bemusedly. "You could stretch out in the back seat, Char," Mike said softly after a moment, lifting his left hand to stroke Charlie’s hair and ignoring the sound of Warren’s car pulling out of the parking lot.

Charlie moved into his touch slightly, making a soft, sleepy sound before he opened his eyes and looked up at Mike. "I’m comfy here, if I won’t bother you while you drive."

"I can drive fine, baby," Mike replied with a smile, leaning to kiss Charlie’s forehead before he lifted his right hand to reach for the gearshift, shifting into reverse and then watching the rear view mirror as he turned around even though there wasn’t anyone else left in the parking lot.

Charlie snuggled comfortably against Mike’s shoulder, wrapping his arms around Mike’s arm and yawning again before he relaxed with a happy little sigh, and Mike couldn’t help but smile as he drove down the nearly deserted streets towards Pawley’s Island.

The evening had gone very well he thought, first coming out to Charlie’s mom – and soon-to-be dad – and then their short shopping trip before they’d met Kelsey at the restaurant. They had each danced with her for a little while before she asked them to dance together and show her a particularly difficult move she just couldn’t get straight in her head, and Mike and Charlie had started showing her the steps that way. Her father just happened to look in on them a few minutes later, and watched Mike and Charlie dancing together for almost a whole song before Mike’s hands began getting much too familiar with Charlie’s ass. Warren hadn’t liked that and made a comment that he hoped Mike wouldn’t grope Kelsey like that, and Mike and Charlie had jumped apart so fast Charlie landed on his butt on the floor.

Kelsey had of course thought that was hilarious – Mike _had_ been known to grab her butt out of habit because he’d danced with Charlie a bit too much – and while she was sitting in a chair giggling, Charlie and Mike had stumbled through an explanation that was so inarticulate and contradictory that Warren finally turned to Kelsey and told her to stop giggling and explain what they meant. Kelsey got a hold of herself after a moment and said that Mike had forgotten Charlie wasn’t her, but she couldn’t hold a straight face and cracked up again, and Warren had finally put two and two together and asked if the boys were gay or something, and when Charlie said yes he’d almost had an apoplexy.

Warren’s shock didn’t last long though, and after a little while they’d all calmed down and talked enough to reassure Warren that nobody was grabbing his daughter’s ass – his main concern – and that Mike and Charlie didn’t want their old jobs back, his secondary concern. Mike and Charlie had been conscientious at their jobs and done a good job, but they were entirely too playful for Warren’s piece of mind and he would just as soon have two waiters who were quiet and serious to replace them. Warren had decided it was time to close up then and ushered everyone outside, and Charlie had been so tired from all the dancing and the stress of the evening and then the laughter that he was sound asleep within minutes of getting into the car.

Mike looked down at Charlie as he stopped at the main gates to the community on Pawley’s Island, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket because he expected to have to show the guard his license, but the guard waved him on when he shined a flashlight into the car and saw him and Charlie.

"I remember you two from the other night, kid, you’re with the singers," the guy said, distaste obvious in his voice. "Go on in."

Mike frowned slightly at the guard’s tone but didn’t say anything, and when the gates opened he drove on inside, tapping his fingers on the gearshift as he drove slowly down the main road through the community and wondering if he should mention the guard’s attitude to the guys. It had definitely been negative, but Mike wasn’t sure if it was because he was with the guys or if the guard didn’t like the way Charlie was curled up against him. Charlie was still sleeping soundly, but he had shifted during the drive and was half-laying against Mike’s side with one hand resting high enough on Mike’s thigh that he could touch his fly with his thumb without moving anything else.

Mike parked outside the last house next to the Expedition, turning off the lights and then the car and putting the parking brake on before he settled back in his seat to think, his right hand absently moving to cover Charlie’s hand as he looked down to watch him sleep in the moonlight. Mike knew that they would run into people who didn’t approve of them being together – they would in all likelihood run into more like that than not, really – but he didn’t want Charlie to have to deal with it so soon. Charlie was trying very hard to relax into being open about their love, but Mike knew how hard it was for him better than anyone else possibly could. They had been together for much too long for Charlie’s attempts at acting to fool Mike, and even though Charlie had been amazing tonight with his mother, the immediate reaction of fear and denial when Warren saw them together was an ingrained one he knew it would take Charlie a lot more than a few days to get over.

Charlie made a soft noise then, nuzzling Mike’s chest as he mumbled, "There yet?"

Mike smiled softly, lifting his left hand to stroke Charlie’s cheek as he replied softly, "Yeah Char, we are. Think you can sit up?"

Charlie took a deep breath and then sighed, slowly sitting up to blink sleepily at Mike, the moonlight making his green eyes look almost blue. "‘M up love. Now let’s go to bed."

Mike smiled and kissed him softly, then whispered, "Hold that thought for a minute."

Charlie nodded, yawning, then said softly, "Holdin’."

Mike chuckled softly and opened his door, sliding out and then offering Charlie his hand as he smiled at him. "C’mon, Char. Once we get inside you can sleep."

"Sleep sounds heavenly," Charlie mumbled with a sweet little smile, taking Mike’s hand and scooting across the seat to the door, then he let out a little ‘eep’ when Mike scooped him up out of the seat instead of letting him get up and walk. Mike grinned at the little noise Charlie made when he picked him up and stepped away from the Tracker, moving around the door and then backing against it to shut it as Charlie laid his head on his shoulder and sighed. "Y’don’t have to carry me. ‘M not a baby."

Mike kissed Charlie’s forehead and then started into the carport, hoping the kitchen door was unlocked as he said softly, "You’re my baby, and you’re tired, so I’m gonna carry you."

Charlie made a little protesting noise, then wrapped his arms around Mike’s neck and nuzzled the soft skin of his throat. "‘M’kay. Wake me when it’s time t’go t’bed."

Mike chuckled, stopping at the back door. "Hey, baby, not so quick. You gotta get the door, my hands are full."

Charlie lifted his head, looking towards the door, then let it fall back to Mike’s shoulder and reached blindly for the door with his right hand and felt around until he hit the doorknob and then turned it, giving the door a little shove when it swung open. "Mmm, door open."

"Thanks, baby," Mike replied, trying not to laugh again and absently thinking about how much he loved it when Charlie was like this. He was always sweet and compliant and completely adorable when he was half asleep, but he only was comfortable enough to relax so completely when he was alone with Mike, so he’d need a video to be able to show it to anyone else. Of course, that was assuming he wanted to share Charlie’s adorable sleepiness; he wasn’t at all sure he did.

Charlie shifted slightly to get more comfortable on his shoulder as Mike moved inside and pushed the door shut behind him with his foot, debating trying to lock it and then starting towards their room when he decided he’d come back for it. Charlie wasn’t asleep again yet – Mike could tell he wasn’t breathing quite right to be asleep – but he was getting close to it and Mike wanted to get him safe in bed, then he’d worry about locking up the house. Mike carried Charlie into their room and then set him on the blankets at the foot of the bed, where Charlie yawned and blinked at him with a sweet little smile.

"C’mon, Char, time to get naked," Mike said softly, returning the smile. "You get your shirts and I’ll do the rest, okay?"

Charlie nodded and lifted both hands to reach for the front of his flannel shirt to start unbuttoning it. "‘Kay. You’re good at stealing my clothes anyway."

Mike chuckled and unbuckled Charlie’s belt, then started on his jeans. "It’s not stealing when you agree, Char."

"You still wind up with ’em," Charlie replied, then yawned widely, fumbling with a button that was being stubborn a moment before he mumbled, "Aw, fuckit."

Charlie grabbed the lower hem of his flannel shirt and his t-shirt and pulled both up without bothering to unbutton anymore, making Mike laugh as he reached for Charlie’s shoes to take them off. "Baby, such language."

Charlie pulled the shirts over his head and then dropped them, sticking his tongue out at Mike before he mumbled, "‘M sleepy and goin’ t’bed now."

Charlie turned away to crawl up onto the bed and Mike stood with a chuckle, grabbing Charlie’s jeans and briefs and pulling them down as Charlie crawled towards the head of the bed. Charlie flopped on the bed as soon as he was far enough to get his head on the pillow, snuggling happily into it even though he still had his pants bunched around his calves and he was wearing one shoe. Mike sat down to finish taking off his shoe with a grin, watching Charlie more than he watched what he was doing, and after a minute or so he dropped Charlie’s shoe and then his pants and socks in the floor.

Mike moved to gather the sheet and blanket from the foot of the bed then, pulling them up over Charlie before he leaned down to kiss Charlie’s cheek, grinning when Charlie smiled and made a soft little happy noise, then mumbled, "Want my pillow."

Mike sat down on the edge of the bed and stroked Charlie’s cheek, grinning. "Char, baby, you’ve got a pillow."

Charlie made a face and grabbed Mike’s hand, tucking it under his chin as he opened his eyes to smile sleepily up at him. "Don’t count, I want you."

Mike leaned down to kiss Charlie softly, smiling as he pulled away a few inches, looking into Charlie’s eyes as he whispered, "I’ll be right back, Char. I have to go lock up, then I’m all yours."

Charlie sighed, looking put upon, then let go of Michael’s hand. "Okay, I’ll wait. Hurry."

"I will."

Mike kissed Charlie’s forehead and then stood, walking quickly out of their room and back to the kitchen and out to the car to get the things Lance had asked them to. He brought them back in and put them away, then he locked the door and turned off the kitchen light before he went to check the door that led to the deck and then headed back to bed. He fully expected Charlie to be sound asleep so after he closed the door behind himself he was in no hurry as he undressed and then picked up their clothes out of the floor, not wanting Charlie to wake up to a mess he knew he’d feel he had to clean up. Mike turned back to the bed after he put the clothes away, and was leaning down to reach for the blankets to pull them back when Charlie did it for him, looking sleepily up at him with his eyes just barely open.

"C’mon, sleep," Charlie mumbled softly, and Mike smiled as he turned off the lamp and slid into bed, then wrapped his arms around Charlie as Charlie snuggled up to him, tucking his head under Mike’s chin.

Mike kissed the top of his head then, stroking Charlie’s back as he whispered softly, "Night Char."

Charlie made a soft pleased noise, relaxing in his arms as he kissed Mike’s chest and mumbled, "Night love."

Mike smiled and nuzzled the top of Charlie’s head, holding him and slowly stroking his back until Charlie’s breath evened out in sleep, then he finally let himself relax as well and was soon asleep.

 

 


	67. Chapter 67

 

~~~~ 67 ~~~~

 

Joey watched Lance tip his head back as Chris ducked his head to lick and nibble at his pale throat, Lance’s fingers digging into Chris’ shoulders as he let out a soft pleased noise, his green eyes falling closed. Joey lifted one hand to stroke Chris’ back then and Chris arched slightly into his touch as his fingers trailed lightly upwards from the small of Chris’ back to his shoulder blades, and Joey didn’t even try to resist the urge to lean down and taste the soft, slightly damp skin of the hollow at the base of Chris’ spine. Chris growled softly as he bit gently at Lance’s collarbone then, making Lance gasp and arch under him as Joey’s other hand moved to the soft skin on the inside of Chris’ thigh.

Joey grinned against Chris’ back as he felt Chris’ legs spread in encouragement as Joey slid his hand slowly up Chris’ leg only to stop just before he reached his ass, earning an impatient growl from Chris. Lance lifted his hips then to rub up against Chris, and Joey’s teasing was practically forgotten as Chris’ hips dipped to grind slowly against Lance while he trailed sharp little nips down Lance’s chest. Joey began kissing slowly along the upper curve of Chris’ ass towards his hip then, taking his time to taste Chris’ skin and leaving a damp trail that made Chris shiver when Joey’s breath ghosted across it. Lance began making soft little pleading noises as Chris got closer to his nipple, his fingernails digging into Chris’ shoulders as he began to breathe in soft pants, and when Chris’ lips finally brushed across the overly-sensitive nub of flesh Lance moaned softly, arching upwards.

Joey nuzzled Chris’ side, running his hand slowly over the curve of Chris’ ass as he noticed the sheen of sweat on Lance’s skin, then lifted his head to look at Lance’s face and saw the way he was gasping for breath. Joey leaned down to nibble at the soft skin high on Chris’ side where he knew he was most ticklish, and when Chris made a soft noise against Lance’s chest that might have been a giggle but didn’t stop what he was doing Joey nipped him a little more roughly, the quick sting making Chris jerk his head up to look at him as Lance made a soft protesting noise.

Joey nodded towards Lance’s face then and Chris turned his head back to look at Lance’s face as Joey patted his hip and nudge him to the side, and Chris nodded slightly to show he understood as he moved, leaning down and kissing Lance just as Lance’s eyes opened to see why he had stopped. Lance’s eyes fell closed again when he felt Chris’ lips on his and let out a soft little happy noise when Chris’ tongue slid into his mouth, then he moaned and sucked at Chris’ tongue as Joey kissed the inside of his thigh and then nuzzled into damp red-gold curls. Chris began stroking Lance’s chest and belly then, savoring the feel of Lance’s skin under his palms while Lance groaned and licked deeper into his mouth, lifting his hips as Joey’s talented mouth began to move over his cock.

 

 

JC gripped the sheets tightly as Justin licked at the inside of his thigh and lifted his leg up onto his shoulder, then shuddered and let out a tiny little whimper as Justin began nibbling delicately at the curve of skin along the lower edge of his ass. JC lifted his leg to brace his foot against Justin’s shoulder then, needing the leverage to move, then cried out softly and arched up off the bed when Justin’s talented fingers plucked gently at his nipple as he licked at JC’s entrance. JC began making soft little pleading noises as Justin’s tongue licked and probed at the tight ring of muscle, and he didn’t even notice when Justin took his hand away from his nipple to open the lube.

Justin lifted his head a moment later to watch JC’s reaction as he slid one finger into him until it was pressing against his prostate, and a smug little grin spread across his face when JC arched up off the bed again, throwing his head back as he bit his lip and whimpered, trying not to yell. Justin stroked JC’s leg soothingly with his free hand, licking his lips as JC gasped and writhed on the bed while Justin’s finger slowly stroked and twisted inside of him, watching him carefully to be sure he was ready for more before he pulled back to slide in a second finger. JC moaned low in his chest then, moving his hips to meet Justin’s fingers every time they pressed deeper into his body, and it was only a few moments before Justin slid a third finger into his body, this time stretching him instead of finger-fucking him.

JC opened his eyes to look for Justin a moment later, his blue eyes slightly glazed but still very aware as he licked at his bitten lower lip and whispered huskily, "Baby, please."

Justin shifted JC’s leg to hook JC’s knee over his shoulder again and then leaned down, bending JC almost double as his fingers moved slowly inside JC. He licked across JC’s lower lip and then murmured, "Tell me what you want."

Justin licked at JC’s lip again and then sucked gently at it without giving JC a chance to answer, pulling away a moment later to lick and nibble at JC’s throat as JC’s hands came up to grip his shoulders. "You," JC groaned out softly as Justin’s fingers thrust deeper to bump his prostate, then he whimpered as Justin pulled them free of his body even though he’d told him to do it. JC lifted his hips then, wrapping his other leg around Justin’s hips, then he let out a little needy noise as he felt Justin’s cock nudge against his entrance. He slid his hands down Justin’s back then, trying to pull him closer as he pleaded softly, " _Now_ , Jus—"

JC broke off mid-word, throwing his head back against the pillow with a groan as Justin’s cock slid into him in a slow, controlled glide before Justin pulled back to thrust again a little harder, drawing a soft cry as JC’s hips bucked up against him. Justin’s lips found the little sensitive spot at the base of JC’s throat then, biting at it and making JC writhe under him and then cry out as he thrust into him again. Justin shifted to support himself on one hand then and reached between their bellies to close his fist around JC’s cock and stroke him firmly, thrusting into him again as JC’s hips lifted to meet him. Justin closed his eyes then, licking and sucking hungrily at JC’s throat as he lost himself in the feel of JC’s willing body moving underneath him and the sounds JC made as his fingers dug into the muscles of Justin’s back.

 

 

 

Lance tried to catch his breath, Chris’ warm hand soothingly rubbing his belly and Joey’s hot tongue licking slowly over his cock contrasting sharply against the feeling of cool air on his sweat-soaked skin as he shivered between aftershocks. He was getting colder by the moment and more than a little sleepy too, but he didn’t really want Chris and Joey to notice just how exhausted he was after that blow job. He wasn’t holding out much hope that they wouldn’t though, he could practically feel Chris watching him and he was sure what he’d see if he opened his eyes to look up into Chris’ brown eyes. He hated making them worry about him.

Chris kissed his temple after a few moments, and Lance felt the bed shift as Joey moved up the bed to lay next to him on the other side before Chris asked softly, "You okay, baby?"

Lance nodded, opening his eyes to give Chris a smile he hoped didn’t look half as tired as he felt, then he looked at Joey. "Joebear just blew my mind, that’s all."

Joey chuckled and leaned down to kiss Lance’s lips softly, resting his right hand on Lance’s chest as he lifted his head to look down at him and said, "No, you’re just exhausted is all."

Lance shivered again then and Chris added, "And cold." He sat up to reach for the sheet and comforter piled at the foot of the bed and then began to try and untangle them.

"Roll over, baby," Joey said as he nudged Lance’s hip, urging him to roll away from him, and Lance rolled to his side, completely unsurprised when Joey pulled him back against his chest and wrapped his arms around him.

Lance leaned back against Joey’s warm chest, shivering again as Chris pulled the covers up over the three of them, then he smiled up at Chris. "Thanks, sweetheart. I am a little cold."

"I think you meant freezing, baby," Chris said with a little grin, then kissed him quickly before he rolled over to lay down with his back to Lance, wriggling slightly to get more comfortable as Lance slipped his arms around him. "But we can fix that."

Lance chuckled and pulled Chris back against his chest, murmuring softly, "Y’all are so warm."

Joey chuckled and kissed the back of Lance’s neck as Chris turned his head to look at Lance again, giving him a little grin. "Joe’s always been just plain hot, so we’ll get you warmed up in no time."

Lance returned the grin and leaned forward to kiss Chris’ cheek before he settled back again, making a low noise as Joey’s hard-on pressed against his ass and then flexing against him as Joey chuckled softly, giving Lance a squeeze. "Forget it, baby, you’re going to sleep."

"But—" Lance started to protest, but Joey cut him off.

"Nope, wait until in the morning."

Chris chuckled, watching them over his shoulder. "Yeah, then if you want you can lay back and let us both enjoy that perfect ass of yours."

Lance blushed slightly but didn’t argue, instead pulling Chris a little closer before he relaxed between them and murmured, "I’ll hold y’all to that."

"Good." Chris snuggled back against Lance’s chest comfortably and then murmured, "G’night, baby," before he reached back to pat Joey’s hip and added softly, "Night, Joe."

Chris’ hand moved back to rest on Lance’s where it was draped around his waist, and Joey lifted his right hand from Lance’s belly to reach further forward and lay it on the back of Chris’, lacing their fingers together with a soft smile. "Night Critter." Joey nuzzled the back of Lance’s neck, smiling a little wider as he felt Lance’s other hand move to cover his and Chris’ hands, then he whispered softly, "Night, baby boy."

Lance let out a sleepy little chuckle. "Good night."

 

 

 

Jake walked off the plane with their backpack slung over his shoulder, guiding Gary as he padded along next to him barefoot and bleary-eyed and much less than half awake. "C’mon, baby," Jake said as they passed through the end of the boarding tunnel, "I’ll find you someplace to sit until you wake up, then I’ll go get our bags and Bandit so we can get out of here."

Gary mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like hallelujah as the tall, rather pretty stewardess greeting people as they disembarked gave Jake a flirtatious smile and asked, "Can I help you with anything, sir?"

Jake shook his head and was about to say something when Gary blinked at the girl, suddenly looking much more awake as he gave her a patently false smile and said, "No, we’re fine."

Jake chuckled slightly, tugging Gary towards the baggage claim as he smiled over his shoulder at the stewardess and added, "Thanks for asking, though."

They started across the terminal then and Jake had to grin when he heard Gary mutter, "Poacher."

"You know she didn’t have a prayer, baby," Jake replied, more than a little amused, and Gary snorted.

" _She_ didn’t know it though, and I’m not about to let some skanky Amazon try and steal my man. She can go poach somewhere else." Gary reached for the backpack as the got to the baggage claim and added, "I need to go to the ladies room, so you get our things. And don’t flirt with anyone."

Jake chuckled and kissed Gary’s temple. "I’ll be good, baby. Go on, I should have our stuff by the time you get back."

Gary snorted softly and walked off towards the restrooms without a word, and Jake couldn’t help a grin as he made his way through the early morning crowd to get their bags off the conveyor belts before he made his way to the nearest baggage desk. Jake had the guy at the counter send someone into the back for Bandit and then made a few enquiries while he waited, and by the time the baggage cart with Bandit’s carrier on it was wheeled out he knew where to go to rent a car big enough to have room for their things, Bandit and his carrier.

Jake added their suitcases to the luggage cart and then crouched by Bandit’s carrier opened it to check on him, grinning when he saw Bandit was just calmly sitting in the crate wagging his tail at him. Callie didn’t even like traveling in the car, and locking her up for nine hours straight on a plane would have had her going insane, but here was Bandit sitting calmly and waiting to be told what to do. He really had to find out where JC had found this dog, and that lady who trained him, too.

Gary had brushed his teeth and combed out his hair while he was in the bathroom, and he looked wide awake as he put the backpack on top of Bandit’s crate then, moving behind Jake and grinning at Bandit as he said, "Hey fellah, were you a good boy?"

Bandit’s tail wagged a little harder but he didn’t try to get out of the crate or anything, and Jake turned his head to look at Gary with a grin. "This is the smartest dog I ever saw. Nothing phases him."

Gary smirked and corrected, "Except Tony, he hates him."

Jake nodded, grinning. "Told you he was the smartest dog I ever saw." Gary laughed as Jake stood up and closed the pet carrier. "Ready to go?"

Gary nodded, still grinning as he brushed his hair back behind one ear. "Anytime you are, honey."

"Great," Jake replied, moving to start the luggage cart rolling towards the exit where the car rental was with Gary following along at his side, sure that Jake knew what was going on. Jake positively hated not knowing what was going on, so he usually was a step ahead of everyone else. JC had said once that Jake and Lance thought so much alike that they might as well have been brothers, but Lance in no way resembled a six foot two Yaqui Indian, so the resemblance was purely mental.

When they reached the car rental place there were a dozen people ahead of them, most of which had kids, which Gary so did not enjoy being around. It only took Gary a few minutes of listening to the kids to decide he really needed to take Bandit for a walk. Jake quickly agreed to that idea, mostly to keep Gary from doing one of his favorite things – annoying the straights – out of sheer boredom. Gary knew exactly why Jake agreed so quickly, of course, but it didn’t slow him down a bit as he dug into the backpack and got out the short traffic leash that was all he ever used with Bandit. He wanted away from the kids too badly to care that Jake was treating him like he was about five years old.

Several of the nearby children watched avidly as Gary bent to open the carrier and told Bandit to get out, but none were brave enough to ask if they could pet the ‘lady’s’ dog before Gary had clipped the short lead to Bandit’s collar and headed outside to look for some grass. Gary and Bandit both were happy to be outside even if it was just in a covered parking lot full of rental cars, and Gary was quick to find an employee and ask where the nearest grass was. The young man he asked pointed him towards the far side of the parking lot, and Gary thanked him before he dropped Bandit’s leash over his back and started off at an easy jog, enjoying the cool concrete against his bare feet as Bandit trotted along beside him. Gary had left his shoes in the floor next to the luggage cart, trusting Jake to notice and pick them up.

Thirty minutes later Jake walked outside to find the Jeep Grand Cherokee he’d rented for the weekend with the keys and a pair of rather delicate looking high heels in one hand as he pulled the luggage cart behind him with the other. Jake got amused looks from several people and a laughing pat on the back from one guy who looked like a biker while he was wandering the parking lot, but he finally found the Jeep. He had just put the last of their things in the back when he heard the slap of bare feet running on concrete and then a wolf whistle. He turned to see Gary jogging towards him with Bandit loose and trotting happily at his side, and several men watching appreciatively. Jake had to grin at the happy sparkle in Gary’s eyes as he stopped in front of him and put his hands on Jake’s chest, leaning up like he always did when he wanted a kiss, and Jake of course obliged.

When Jake lifted his head a moment later to end the kiss, Gary beamed up at him and said, "We found somebody who knew where there was some real grass, but it was way to hell and gone at the far side of the parking lot, so we got to go for a jog."

Jake chuckled, shaking his head ruefully and looking down at Bandit, who had sat down by their feet and was looking around interestedly. "And I suppose you left him loose the whole time, leash law be damned?"

Gary grinned and bent to grab Bandit’s leash as he wrapped one arm around Bandit’s neck and said, "He’s wearing a leash! He had it on the whole time, and he didn’t bother anything." Gary giggled and amended, "Well, except a few tires."

Jake laughed and pointed at the car as he started around towards the driver’s side. "Get in. I’m hungry."

"Breakfast sounds great," Gary agreed, standing up again and then grinning at Bandit as he opened the back door to the Jeep. "Come on Bandit, get in." Bandit hopped into the car as Jake opened the driver’s door and Gary was about to close the rear passenger door before he paused, looking through the car at Jake as he asked, "Should I put his window down?"

Jake shook his head and climbed into the driver’s seat, reaching to buckle the seatbelt. "Nah, the air from our windows will be plenty if it gets hot enough to roll them down before we get out to that island."

"Okay." Gary shut the rear door and moved to get in the front seat, sitting down as he added, "And it’s Pawley’s Island. It should be pretty easy to find I think."

"Good," Jake said with a quick grin as he started the car, half-turning in his seat to look behind them before he started backing out of the parking space. "We’ve never been here before, so easy would be nice."

Gary giggled, turning sideways in his seat and reaching back to ruffle Bandit’s ears as Jake drove towards the exit. "Breakfast first, then we go shopping and then go surprise Josh."

Jake laughed, glancing at him and then pulling out into the light traffic on US 17 South as he asked, "Why do we need to go shopping?"

"Because, it’s barely eight-thirty on a Friday morning, and they’re on vacation, duh," Gary replied, smirking at Jake. "And, I forgot to bring another pair of shoes so I need some tennies or a pair of flip-flops or something. There’s no _way_ I’m going to the beach in high heels, and I’m not brave enough to go barefoot after stepping on that jellyfish last summer."

Jake chuckled, shaking his head. "You should have let me help you pack. You knew they were staying at the beach."

Gary just made a face at him and then pointed at the next intersection, where there was a sign for the State Park. "Turn left here, we need to be on Ocean Boulevard."

"And how do you figure that?" Jake asked, grinning as he flipped his turn signal on and got into the turning lane and then stopped, waiting for the light.

"Because it sounds nice," Gary replied with a grin.

Jake laughed. "You’re going to get us so lost."

"No I’m not," Gary replied cheerfully as the light changed and Jake made the turn. "We’re going to buy a map when we stop for breakfast."

Jake chuckled softly and then asked, "So what do you want for breakfast?"

"Donuts," Gary answered immediately, grinning and pointing at a sign about half a block further down the road. "And we can get extra as a peace offering just in case we wake up the guys when we get there."

"Sounds like a plan to me," Jake agreed, grinning as he glanced behind them and then switched on the blinker again as he merged into to the left lane, preparing to turn into the Krispy Kreme Donuts parking lot.

 

 

 

JC and Justin woke up around nine, and after a leisurely shower together – JC had commented that he hoped the hot water heater heated up fast or Lance would kill them – JC managed to get Justin to agree to let him clean up the mess on the back deck while Justin washed a load of clothes and changed the sheets on their bed, which really did need it.

By ten fifteen JC was dressed in his cutoff shorts and a t-shirt, and headed outside to gather the paper cans that had blown around in the breeze all night and were scattered from the sliding doors all the way down onto the beach. They really should have picked them up the night before so they wouldn’t scatter, but JC didn’t regret leaving them. His evening with Justin had been worth cleaning up a whole beach full of cans, so a couple of cases worth was only a small inconvenience.

Justin had just finished making their bed when he heard a buzzing noise coming from his backpack and it took him a moment to recognize it as JC’s cell. Justin didn’t want whoever it was to hang up before he got the phone to JC so he answered it, already walking towards the open door that led to the deck as he said, "Hello, this is JC’s phone. Gimme a minute and I’ll go get him."

"No, don’t!" an unfamiliar voice replied immediately, and Justin paused at the door, looking out towards where JC was walking along the beach towards a green can that shone in the sun.

"Why not?" Justin asked with a sudden frown, watching JC bend to pick up the can as a little corner of his mind wondered how it got out there and then turning away from the door to walk back over to the bed. "Who is this?"

"Jake’s girlfriend, Gina," the voice replied. "Is this Justin?"

Justin grinned as he sat down on the end of the bed and nodded even though Gary couldn’t possibly see him. "Yep. Hey Gary, whatcha need?"

"Well, see, that’s kind of a funny story," Gary said instead of answering, and Justin heard someone laugh in the background. "Mainly I need you to call the gate and tell this nice man here that you know us so he’ll let us in."

Justin’s eyes widened. "Here, here? As in Pawley’s Island here?"

"Uh-huh," Gary replied, sounding amused. "And we brought Bandit, too."

"Oh man!" Justin exlaimed with a laugh, jumping up off the bed to head for the desk in the den, where he remembered Lance saying the numbers for the gate and the manager’s office were. "Josh is going to be tickled pink!"

"We figured the same thing," Gary replied with a grin, "He’s been really missing Bandit."

"He’ll love seeing you and Jake, too," Justin corrected, grinning at Mike and Charlie as he walked into the den, where they were watching VH1 Classics while they ate their breakfast. Justin moved straight to the desk, opening the drawers to find a pen as he sat down and asked, "What are the names I need to give the guard? He’ll want whatever’s on your drivers license."

Charlie and Mike exchanged a quick surprised look and then looked at Justin again as Justin listened to Gary say, "That’d be Jaquim Torres and Gina Rivers."

"Okay," Justin replied with a grin, jotting the names down quickly on the piece of paper that had the number for the front gate on it in Lance’s familiar scrawl. "I’ll call him as soon as I hang up. I can’t wait to meet you two, I gotta thank Jake for all the times he’s decked Tony."

Mike laughed at that, earning a quick grin from Justin as Gary giggled and said, "Well, if all goes well we’ll be there in about five minutes, if you call the guard now."

"Great!" Justin replied, still grinning. "Hang up and I will."

Gary laughed. "Bye Justin."

"Bye," Justin replied, "See you soon."

Gary hung up then and Justin closed JC’s phone, looking up quickly as the kitchen door opened and closed, then Justin grinned at Mike and Charlie as he stood up, grabbing the piece of paper. "Tell Josh I’ll be right back. I went to get something out of the car."

Mike grinned and nodded as the kitchen door closed again and Charlie said, "Sure."

"Thanks!" Justin grinned at them and opened the sliding glass door, and then he ducked outside, pulling it closed and then stepping out of sight just as JC walked into the den with a Mountain Dew.

"Morning guys," JC said cheerfully, grinning at Mike and Charlie as he walked over to sit in the recliner. "Have y’all seen Justin?"

Charlie nodded, returning the grin. "Yeah, he went out to get something out of the car, but he said he’d be right back."

"Okay, cool," JC said, then took a drink of his Mountain Dew, watching the video for ‘ _Rio_ ’ and letting Mike and Charlie eat their breakfast for a few minutes before he looked back over at them, smiling as he asked, "Have you two been up long?"

Charlie shook his head, swallowing his last bite of cereal as Mike smiled back at JC and said, "Only an hour or so, we got in late."

"Everything go okay with your mom?" JC asked, tilting his head slightly as he looked at Charlie.

"Yeah, better then I expected," Charlie answered with a quick grin. "Took a big load off of my mind."

"Great!" JC replied, grinning. "I’m happy for you, Charlie."

"Thanks." Charlie stood up then to take his bowl back into the kitchen and Mike handed him his bowl too with a quick grin as Charlie asked, "Want anything while I’m up, love?"

Mike shook his head. "No baby, I’m fine."

Charlie smirked and started towards the kitchen. "Yeah, you are, but that’s not what I asked you."

JC and Mike both laughed at that but neither of them commented, and when next video began they grinned at each other and both began to sing along as Mike turned the television up a bit. " _’_ _It_ _’_ _s all the same, only the names will change... Everyday, it seems we_ _’_ _re wasting away. Another place where the faces are so cold, I_ _’_ _d drive all night, just to get back home. I_ _’_ _m a cowboy, on a steel horse I ride; I_ _’_ _m wanted, dead or alive. Wanted, dead or alive._ ’"

Charlie walked back in to join them as the second verse began and stopped in the doorway to watch them both with a bemused expression as they sang along all the way through the song before he moved to sit back down next to Mike, opening his mouth to say something just as the next video began and JC exclaimed, "Oh man, I’ve never seen this one!"

Charlie grinned at Mike and they both watched as JC grooved along to ‘ _The One I Love_ ’ by R.E.M. as he watched the video avidly and sang along, his voice blending in but sounding more like a normal guy than a trained singer. None of them noticed the sound of the back door closing a couple of minutes later or the sudden low whine in the kitchen, but they couldn’t help but notice the black and white blur that raced into the room a moment later.

JC barely had time to set his drink down before the dog reached him, then leapt into his lap with a happy bark as JC exclaimed, "Bandit!" JC laughed and buried his hands in the dog’s ruff as Bandit put his paws on his shoulders and started licking his face, wagging his tail so hard that his whole body was wriggling.

 

 


	68. Chapter 68

 

~~~~ 68 ~~~~

 

When Lance woke up he was curled up on his side, snug and warm under the blankets with that lazy, drowsy feeling that usually led him to sleep just a few more minutes on days when they had nothing planned. He pushed one hand out from under the covers to rub his nose as he yawned softly, blinking slowly until his eyes focused enough he could see the clock and then sighed softly, tucking his hand back under the covers below his chin. He knew that the others wouldn’t want him getting up yet – to Joey ten o’clock was still early, and JC and Justin both loved to ‘sleep’ until noon – so he closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep again, not even bothering to wonder what had woken him up.

He had almost fallen asleep again when he heard a soft noise behind him as felt the bed move slightly and he opened his eyes again, looking much more alert then he had a few moments ago as he listened, wondering what Joey had done to make Chris gasp and wishing he was facing them so he could watch without them noticing.

Lance hadn’t admitted it to either of them, but he loved watching Joey and Chris and seeing the way the love they had for each other translated into physical affection when they both relaxed and gave it free rein. They didn’t often, and Lance felt a little guilty for that even though he knew they wouldn’t want him to. He was sure that if he wasn’t there Joey and Chris would have been as absorbed in each other as Justin and JC were, but he _was_ there, and they seemed to have an agreement that they’d make him their priority even though Lance had never asked for that. He loved them both and wanted them to be happy more than anything so he let them take care of him even though he didn’t need it.

‘ _Well,_ ’ he thought wryly, remembering the way he’d practically collapsed on the beach the night before, ‘ _most of the time I don_ _’_ _t_.’

Lance felt the bed move again as he heard Chris muffle a moan, then heard a tiny whispery noise and held his breath, trying to hear what Joey was saying as Chris’ breathing hitched slightly. Lance was sure Joey was doing Chris and wished again he could see them, wondering how Joey was keeping Chris so quiet. Chris was a lot of things in bed, but quiet was seldom one of them unless his mouth was otherwise occupied. Chris was especially vocal when he was bottoming though – Lance had a sneaking suspicion that Chris was a bottom boy at heart and didn’t want to admit it – and Joey and Lance both enjoyed listening to the soft sound of Chris’ voice urging them on.

Lance heard Chris whimper after a moment and fought the urge to touch himself as the bed rocked slightly under him with what he was sure were Joey’s thrusts, wishing again that he could see them as Lance heard Joey whisper a bit louder than he had before, his voice husky and low. "You have no idea how perfect you are, Chris." Chris made a soft protesting noise at that and Lance was sure he was about to disagree when the bed rocked again and Chris gasped instead, then Joey whispered again, his voice little more than a low growl. "Don’t argue with me, Critter, or I’ll have to sic our boy on you."

"Le—" The bed rocked again and Chris groaned softly, then he tried again, whispering, "Let him sleep, Joebear, I’ll be good."

The bed rocked again as Chris’ breath hitched, his breathing speeding up slightly as Joey’s soft amused voice replied, "You’re always good, but he’s wide awake, Critter, and has been for a few minutes."

Lance couldn’t help a grin at that, wondering yet again if Joey could read his mind as he listened to Chris suddenly hold his breath, listening to him, then the bed rocked again and Chris gasped. Lance heard the soft unmistakable sound of a hand swatting firm flesh then and grinned even wider as Chris whispered, "Ass."

Joey chuckled softly and whispered back, "No baby, that was my leg."

Lance bit his lip to keep from laughing at that, easily able to envision Chris’s expression as he muttered, "Smartass." Joey chuckled again and then the bed shifted slightly as Chris made a soft pleased noise, then he asked softly, "If he’s awake, why is he ignoring us?"

"He’s not," Joey answered immediately, his voice still obviously amused. "He’s laying there listening to us and wishing he’d fallen asleep facing the other way so he could have watched without us noticing."

Lance chuckled then and rolled over to face them, his green eyes sparkling as Joey grinned at him over Chris’ shoulder. "How do you always know what I’m thinking, Joe?" Lance asked, his voice low and rumbly with sleep.

Joey grinned even wider. "Cause I know you, baby. You like—" Joey broke off, looking surprised as he listened a moment, then asked, "Did I just hear a dog bark, or am I going nuts?"

Lance laughed softly as Chris twisted to look over his shoulder at Joey, grinning, and replied, "You’re going nuts. There aren’t any dogs around here unless you count horndogs, and Jup’s not very prone to barking."

Lance chuckled again, watching them both as Chris watched Joey listen a moment longer, then he shrugged slightly. "Maybe it was the television." He smirked suddenly and bit Chris’ shoulder, making Chris’ brown eyes darken slightly just as Joey’s hips rocked, drawing a low groan from Chris.

Lance kicked off the blankets and moved towards them. He could watch another time. Right now he wanted to play too.

 

 

 

Justin walked into the den and moved over to sit on the couch next to Mike as Jake and Gary followed him into the room to stop near the door, and all three of them grinned from ear to ear as they watched JC wrap his arms around Bandit and bury his face in his fur. After a moment Mike and Charlie’s curiosity about Gary and Jake made them both look at the newcomers instead of watching JC with the dog, and both of them were a little surprised by the sharp contrast between them.

Jake was obviously Native American, over six feet tall with deep bronze skin, eyes the color of chocolate and shoulder length blue-black hair that he wore with the front pulled back and braided. He had a heavy muscular build that was emphasized by his tight jeans and tucked in white t-shirt, and the loose deep purple denim shirt he wore over it did little to detract from the effect. Mike was big guy himself, and still growing, but he would never be quite as impressively large and muscular as Jake was and he knew it. Jake looked to him like the kind of guy you called sir and stayed out of his way when he was annoyed. Far out of his way.

Gary was quite the opposite, only five foot four with a light, delicate build and wavy brown hair that had a multitude of red highlights in it that set off his green eyes. Gary looked perfectly at home in the sleek black sweater and long green skirt he wore and he held himself like a woman, one arm wrapped around Jake’s arm as he held on to him like the typical clingy girlfriend would. Gary wasn’t as curvy as some women, true, but he definitely had enough curves to look obviously female, whether they were real or not, and his face, hair and mannerisms made the illusion just that much more realistic. Mike wouldn’t have looked twice at Gary if he saw him on the street; the first look would have made him think ‘pretty girl’ and he would have kept right on going.

JC suddenly lifted his head after he had held Bandit a few minutes, still grinning as he finally looked towards the door and said, "Down boy." Bandit hopped out of his lap and JC immediately jumped up, crossing the room quickly with Bandit following at his heels as he moved over to Jake and Gary.

"Hey Josh," Gary said with a grin. "We were in the neighborhood..."

JC laughed and gave Gary a hug as he replied, "Yeah, sure you were, Gare."

Gary gave JC a quick hug and then pulled back, smirking up at him. "We were. After the nine hour flight, breakfast and a little shopping."

Justin and Mike both laughed at that and Gary grinned at them.

JC moved away from Gary, grinning at Jake as he said, "Hi Kimmy."

Gary started giggling as Jake laughed and lunged for JC. "Alright, fairyboy! You’re going down!"

JC laughed and turned to run but Jake caught him, wrapping one arm around JC’s waist and pulling him back towards him as he started tickling him with the other. JC collapsed in fits of giggles, squirming and pushing at Jake’s arm while Jake held him up easily, then JC twisted around and tickled Jake’s belly, making Jake laugh and loosen his hold. JC tried to take advantage of that to lunge away, but Jake didn’t let go and instead he pulled Jake off balance, sending them both crashing to the floor.

Charlie and Mike had both looked at Justin when JC greeted Gary and Jake so familiarly, but Justin just watched them with a grin, feeling more grateful to Jake and Gary than ever. JC had far too little fun over the last few years as far as Justin was concerned, so seeing that he played around and enjoyed himself with Jake and Gary was a wonderful thing to him. It didn’t even cross his mind that he should be jealous that Jake and JC had obviously wrestled and played before. He knew JC wasn’t interested in Gary or Jake like that, they were his friends.

JC and Jake wrestled for a few minutes after they hit the floor, both laughing as Bandit bounced around them, barking happily and trying to get them to play with him too, but JC finally gasped out between giggles, "Uncle, okay! You win."

Jake smirked and let JC go, shifting to sit cross-legged in the floor near JC, who was sprawled flat on his back and still giggling as Bandit started licking his face, wagging his tail so hard his whole body was shaking.

 

 

 

Chris jerked his head up as a dog started barking again, making Lance groan in annoyance before he noticed the noise and propped himself up on his elbows too, looking surprised.

"Well," Joey said dryly as he walked out of the bathroom, "either we’re having a mass hallucination this time, or I _did_ hear a dog earlier."

Joey moved to the dresser to start rooting through his bag for clothes for the day as Lance gave him an amused look, then Lance flopped back onto his back on the bed, lifting one hand immediately to poke Chris in the chest. "Back to work you, or I’ll take over."

Chris looked down at Lance, raising one eyebrow as he smirked and said, "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Lance replied, smirking back as he reached up again and tweaked one of Chris’ nipples. "Joey’s even done all the prep for me, so all I’d have to do is go for it. I wouldn’t mind fucking you so good you forget my name’s not God."

Chris grinned down at him. "Prove it."

Joey laughed and moved away from the dresser to put one knee on the edge of the bed as he reached to swat Chris’ ass lightly, making Chris look at him and then move aside with a smirk as Joey moved half over Lance, looking down into Lance’s green eyes with a wicked twinkle in his eyes. "Since he already came twice, how ‘bout we just make you forget your name instead?"

Lance grinned up at Joey, moving to fold his hands behind his head as he pulled one leg up, bracing his foot on the mattress. "I could be persuaded..."

Chris smirked and leaned over to lick at the inside of Lance’s thigh as Joey grinned wickedly at Lance and leaned down to bite his nipple gently, making Lance arch and gasp as Joey laved it with his tongue and then rolled it between his teeth. Joey’s hand moved to rest just below the curve of Lance’s chest a moment later, stroking slowly over firm, smooth skin of Lance’s upper belly as he began licking and nibbling across his chest. Lance moved his hands after a moment, one fisting in the sheet next to his hip as the other went to cup the back of Joey’s head, urging him to move more quickly to his other nipple.

Joey obliged, closing his lips over the taut bud and sucking gently at it, and Lance couldn’t help letting out a soft noise that turned into a low groan when Chris licked delicately at the head of his cock. Chris grinned and licked slowly at the slit, savoring the taste of Lance’s precome as he moved one hand to palm Lance’s balls before he closed his fingers firmly around the base of Lance’s cock and took the head into his mouth. Lance groaned again more deeply then, his legs spreading wider seemingly of their own accord as Chris began to move over his cock, sucking firmly each time he lifted his head while Lance bit his lip and let out soft little tortured sounds.

Joey lifted his head then, knowing from experience that the stifled noises Lance was making meant he was biting his lip, and leaned up to kiss Lance, licking at his lips until Lance suddenly parted them with a deep growl and licked into Joey’s mouth hungrily. Joey let out a soft pleased noise and willingly let Lance dominate the kiss, their tongues tangling together as Lance cupped the back of Joey’s neck and pulled him down further. Joey ran his hand over the muscles of Lance’s belly, enjoying the way they rippled under his hand as Lance lifted his other hand to slide into Joey’s hair and tilted his head to the side, deepening the kiss.

Lance let out tiny little hungry noises as he tried to fight the instinctive urge to thrust into Chris’ mouth, the muscles in his thighs and belly clenching and flexing, but when Chris swallowed his cock a moment later he couldn’t restrain himself any longer and groaned into Joey’s mouth as his hips lifted off the bed. Chris was ready for it and moved with him as he finally loosened his hold on the base of Lance’s cock, earning another deep growl from Lance as his hips rose sharply. Lance’s hips lifted again almost immediately as Chris increased the suction on his cock and began bobbing his head in short little jerks, and it was only a few moments before Lance’s body stiffened and then Chris let out a soft little pleased noise as he began to swallow.

Joey was usually teasing when he said Chris’ favorite hobby was sucking cock, but Chris did love doing it and got almost as much of a rush from giving blow jobs as Lance or Joey got receiving them. He’d even been known to come while giving one without ever touching his cock, though he would never admit that to anyone except Joey, who had been there. It was right on the verge of embarrassing territory in Chris’ mind and, like coming in his pants, wasn’t something he intended to do often. Of course, there were a lot of things he didn’t intend to do that he did anyway.

 

 

 

JC told Bandit to back off after he’d caught his breath, grinning and sitting up as the dog quieted and laid down with his head on JC’s thigh, and JC began absently scratching Bandit’s neck as he looked at Jake and then up at Gary and said, "I’d like you two to meet Mike," Mike lifted his hand an gave them a little wave and a grin, "and Charlie." Charlie smiled at them both and then JC went on, "You obviously know Justin, who is so gonna pay for not telling me you were coming." JC gave Justin a mock glare that quickly dissolved into a grin as JC looked up at Gary and asked, "Why didn’t you say something?"

Gary smirked, moving over to where Jake was and then sitting down in Jake’s lap, ignoring the bemused look Jake gave JC as he wrapped his arms around Gary. "It was a last minute thing," Gary replied, "Jake got some unexpected time off and I didn’t have anything to do that couldn’t wait, and Bandit was missing you, and you needed your bag too so here we are."

JC laughed softly, looking down at Bandit a moment before he looked back over at Gary and Jake, smiling. "Not that I’m complaining or anything -- it’s great to see you two! – but you could have mailed my bag and Bandit could have waited another week to see me."

Jake grinned at JC, ignoring Gary’s wordless protest as he shifted Gary on his lap so Gary’s weight was more evenly distributed across it. "You could wait, and _Bandit_ could wait, but _Gary_ has the patience of a gnat."

JC, Justin, Charlie, and Mike all laughed at that as Gary said, "Hey!" and swatted Jake’s shoulder. "I have plenty of patience!"

"Patience as in being able to wait for something, baby," Jake clarified with a smirk, "Not patients whose heads you shrink."

Gary folded his arms across his chest, pouting prettily. "You’re not getting any today." Jake grinned and leaned forward to kiss Gary’s temple, prompting Gary to turn his head away and add, "And not tonight, either. You can find someplace else to sleep."

Jake’s face fell and JC stifled the urge to laugh as he said, "Sounds like you need to apologize, Jaqui, or you’ll be sleeping on the couch. We’ve only got the one extra room."

Gary snorted. "He’ll have to do more than apologize. He’ll have to make me think he _means_ it."

Jake let his head fall forward and rested his forehead against Gary’s hair as he mumbled disconsolately, "Would it help to say I love you? A whole hell of a lot? And I _hate_ sleeping alone?"

"Not much, no," Gary replied, the corner of his mouth twitching as he fought the urge to grin.

"Damn," Jake muttered, making JC and Gary grin at each other.

 

 

 

"Okay Joe," Lance said after he’d finally caught his breath, "it’s official."

Joey looked up from going through Lance’s clothes looking for the new jeans Lance had bought and grinned at Lance from where he knelt in the floor by Lance’s suitcase. "What is, baby?"

Lance rolled his head to the side, looking at Joey. "His mouth is a lethal weapon. He killed me."

Joey chuckled and looked back down at Lance’s suitcase as Chris stuck his head out of the bathroom with a broad grin, gesturing towards the bed with his toothbrush. "Still remember your name?"

Lance stretched slowly and then rolled to his side to face Chris, a little smirk quirking the corners of his mouth as he repeated what Chris had whispered in his ear before he left the bed. "Fucking Gorgeous?"

Chris and Joey both laughed as Lance’s smirk grew and then Chris ducked back into the bathroom saying, "If you want company in your shower get a move on, baby."

Lance climbed out of bed as Joey stood up with the black jeans he’d been looking for and a t-shirt for Lance to wear that day, and Lance walked over to Joey and wrapped his arms around him, looking up at Joey with a little grin. "G’mornin’."

Joey leaned down to kiss Lance, then grinned back and replied, "Good morning, baby." Joey tossed the clothes onto the dresser with his, then wrapped his arms around Lance to give him a squeeze as he heard the shower start and added, "I think Chris is starting to like our morning showers."

Lance chuckled and kissed Joey’s collarbone as he gave him another squeeze and then pulled away, grabbing Joey’s hand to tug him towards the bathroom. "That’s good, we _always_ need one."

Joey chuckled and followed Lance as he said, "That’s because working up a sweat is fun."

Lance grinned over his shoulder at Joey as he stepped into the bathroom. "You won’t get any arguments from me on that one, sweethe— Eep!"

Chris smirked and goosed Lance’s ribs again. "Get moving, Mr. Fucking Gorgeous, the water’s already nice and hot."

Lance gave Chris a bemused look and then let go of Joey’s hand to climb into the shower as he said, "And you call _me_ a morning person."

Chris’ smirk didn’t fade even a little as he stood at the edge of the shower, watching the water run down Lance’s body. "I’m not a morning person, baby. I’m a hyper-after-blowing-your-mind person."

Joey laughed and gave Chris a shove as Lance turned his back to them and reached for the faucet to turn the hot water up a bit. "Get in the shower."

Chris grinned over his shoulder at Joey and then climbed in the shower with Lance, immediately moving to slide his arms around Lance and lick at the water running down the back of Lance’s neck. Joey smirked and followed him into the shower, pulling the door closed behind himself.

 

 

~ End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And... That’s all she wrote. In a very literal sense.
> 
> I began this story in 2001 and like a fool I stopped writing ‘just for a day or two’ to write another story that was bunnying me at the time. I had so much more I wanted to get to with these characters, but like many good things in my life, once I had let this story fade from my mind it was impossible to get it back.
> 
> I’m sorry now.
> 
> I wanted to read how it ended, too.


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